Picchvai / Artist Unknown, India

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Record Details

Accession Number
2008/2.288
Title
Picchvai
Artist Nationality
Indian
Object Creation Date
1700-1850
Object Creation Place
Asia (continent)
India (nation)
Creation Place 1
Asia (continent)
Creation Place 2
India (nation)
Dimensions
177.8 cm x 133.99 cm (70 in. x 52 3/4 in.)
Primary Object Classification
Painting
Primary Object Type
narrative painting
Secondary Object Classification
Textile
Physical Description
Painting on cloth in an array of colors that depicts a religious scene. There are assorted animals such as monkeys and cows with red hand prints on them.
There is a river at the fore of the painting with flowers and lily pads in it. The painting has a colorful floral border.
Subject Matter
Picchvai, painted devotional hangings, are often commissioned for a public temple or private or portable shrines. They represent scenes from the life of the Hindu deity Krishna (always depicted as blue) and are commonly used as a backdrop to statues of Krishna himself. In this work, Krishna appears in the form of Srinathji, a manifestation commonly worshipped by the Hindu sect Vallabhalharya Sampradayala. The scene depicted shows Krishna and his half-brother Balarama as they encounter gopis (cow-herding girls) while traveling on Mount Govardhan; in exchange for their protection, Krishna and Balarama demand a toll of milk from the gopis. As Krishna tugs on the garments of a gopi, milk spills from the pot she carries on her head. Below, the monkeys who inhabit the mountain and some cow-herding males enjoy the spoils of this confrontation.
Gallery Rotation Spring 2011
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Technical Details

Record
2008/2.288
Link to this Item
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2008-sl-2.288/ri_go2008_47_3.jpg

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Full citation
"Picchvai; Artist Unknown, India." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2008-sl-2.288/ri_go2008_47_3.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 28, 2024.
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