A PAHARI MINIATURE PAINTING FROM A BHAGAVATA PURANA SERIES DEPICTING VASUDEVA CARRYING THE NEWBORN KRISHNA OUT OF THE PALACE OF KING KAMSA, LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY

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A PAHARI MINIATURE PAINTING FROM A BHAGAVATA PURANA SERIES DEPICTING VASUDEVA CARRYING THE NEWBORN KRISHNA OUT OF THE PALACE OF KING KAMSA, LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY Northern India, Punjab Hills. Ink, gouache, and gold on paper. Finely painted in vibrant colors, depicting three successive moments within the narrative scene, with Vasudeva and Devaki, the parents of the newly born Krishna, shown in the upper right with the infant before them wrapped in a golden cloth, Vasudeva at the center carrying his son through the gateway of the intricate palace complex of King Kamsa, where the parents had been imprisoned, past the sleeping guards, and, finally, the father fleeing by night with the child in his arms, away from the palace, while the inhabitants remain asleep in the buildings surrounding the royal enclosure. Dimensions: Image size 27.1 x 33.2 cm, Size incl. frame 38.7 x 48.7 cm Mounted and framed behind glass. (2) The present scene illustrates an episode from Book 10, chapter 3 of the Bhagavata Purana, which recounts the birth of Krishna, son of Devaki and Vasudeva, members of the royal family of Mathura. Devaki is the sister of King Kamsa, the tyrannical ruler of Mathura. After learning of a prophecy that foretells his death at the hands of the eighth child of Devaki, Kamsa imprisons the couple and orders the death of their earlier children. At the birth of Krishna, the divine nature of the child is revealed, and Vasudeva is instructed to carry him secretly to Gokula, a pastoral settlement in the Braj region near Mathura. Through divine intervention, the guards fall asleep and the prison doors open, allowing Vasudeva to leave with the newborn child. In Gokula he reaches the home of Nanda and Yashoda, a pastoral couple who will raise Krishna as their own son. Vasudeva places Krishna beside Yashoda, who has also just given birth, and takes her newborn daughter, Yogamaya, back to the prison in his place. Krishna is thus protected from Kamsa and begins his childhood in concealment among the pastoral community of Gokula. The Bhagavata Purana is one of the most important sacred texts of the Hindu tradition and holds particular significance within Vaishnavism, a devotional tradition centered on Vishnu and his incarnations. Probably composed in Sanskrit between the ninth and tenth centuries, while incorporating earlier traditions and narrative material, it belongs to the genre of the Puranas, extensive compilations that combine mythology, genealogy, cosmology, religious doctrine, and exemplary narratives. The text is divided into twelve books, or skandhas, and gives a central place to bhakti, or devotional worship, as a means of approaching the divine. Book 10, the best-known section of the work, presents an extensive account of the life of Krishna, from his birth and childhood among the pastoral communities of Braj to his later exploits, and became one of the principal literary sources for the iconography of Krishna in Indian painting. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 22 September 2020, lot 378 Price: USD 30,240 or approx. EUR 33,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject and related manner of painting. Note the image size (26 x 37.8 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s New York, 23 March 2022, lot 469 Price: USD 100,800 or approx. EUR 100,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the related subject and manner of painting, notably the similar treatment of the palatial architectural setting. Note the image size (31.6 x 42.5 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s London, 10 June 2015, lot 56 Price: GBP 88,900 or approx. EUR 148,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject and related manner of painting. Note the image size (23 x 33.6 cm).

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