Taurus, from a "Mandi Astrology Series" (c. 1810): Art, History and Details

Taurus, from a "Mandi Astrology Series" (c. 1810) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Sanju (Indian, active late 1700s–early 1800s).

The work and its context

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

Standing for the astrological sign Taurus, the large-scale bull fills the space like a graceful icon behind a much smaller herd of cows. Pure white in color and in perfect profile, he has been adorned with a string of bells, a jeweled diadem, and decorative tips on his horns. A fine textile with gold leafy arabesque patterns sets him apart from oxen, dairy cows, and even the elephants in the distant background.

Object facts

• Title: Taurus, from a "Mandi Astrology Series"
• Date: c. 1810
• Creator attribution: Sanju (Indian, active late 1700s–early 1800s)
• Culture: Northern India, Pahari kingdoms
• Type: Painting
• Technique: Gum tempera and gold on paper
• Dimensions: 27 x 22.2 cm (10 5/8 x 8 3/4 in.)
• Collection: Indian Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 2020.432

A detail from the museum

The oval format derives from the popularity of British cameos at the Mughal court.

Collection credit

Gift of Nancy and Wayne Hunnicutt

Further reading listed by the museum

• Sotheby's, New York. Indian & Southeast Asian Art: Including Modern Indian Paintings from the Wilberding Collection. 20 September 2005.

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.