Krishna Abhisarika Nayika, from a Rasikapriya manuscript (c. 1615–25): Art, History and Details

Krishna Abhisarika Nayika, from a Rasikapriya manuscript (c. 1615–25) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Two women quarrel outside a house while the Nayaka (hero protagonist) watches from a safe distance. The woman wearing a red scarf appears to be the Nayaka’s wife or beloved, who has just realized her partner’s infidelity. In a fit of anger, she strangles the other woman, who would be the Nayaka’s mistress, and raises a leg to kick her.

Object facts

• Title: Krishna Abhisarika Nayika, from a Rasikapriya manuscript
• Date: c. 1615–25
• Culture: Northwestern India, Rajasthan, Rajput Kingdom of Amber
• Type: Painting
• Technique: Gum tempera on paper
• Dimensions: Miniature: 12.1 x 12.7 cm (4 3/4 x 5 in.)
• Collection: Indian Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 2018.166

A detail from the museum

The mistress of the protagonist offers her rival a betel leaf to calm her down.

Collection credit

Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.