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Tanjore Painting Krishna India India Gold Stealing Butter Antique - $2,999 (irvine)
condition:
excellent
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early 19th century
Opaque pigments, gold leaf and sukka (limestone paste) on coarse cotton canvas laid on wood
the vertical-format composition depicting the beloved scene of Lord Krishna as a child stealing ghee (clarified butter) from his foster mother Yashoda
the child portrayed with a faint and contented smile on his face, holding the large butter jar under his arm and next to his hip, wearing an ornate and heavily encrusted headdress with the typical peacock's feather at the top, his accessories indicative of his importance and divine nature, including several thick gold necklaces encrusted with untested rubies, and green and red glass beads; a golden waistband; thick bejewelled armbands; wristbands; anklets; and a ceremonial garland of fresh pink flowers resting on his shoulders and extending until the right foot
Baby Krishna flanked by his mother by birth, Devaki, to the right and his foster mother Yashoda to the left
both mothers heavily bejewelled and making offerings to the child
Yashoda a piece of butter and a green parakeet, and Devaki a lotus flower
the scene set underneath a lobed golden arch with green curtains
at the bottom a frieze with two devotees prepping ghee balls prasadas
behind them a white cow and a shrine
mounted, glazed and framed
Approx: 18 x 15 inch including the frame.
The image of Lord Krishna as the young thief of ghee is perhaps one of the dearest and most popular subjects in Tanjore's painting. Usually commissioned by members of the South Indian aristocracy, the devotional scope of these paintings is still served to this day.
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