Antique 19th Century Indian Kalighat Painting of Krishna Milking Cow, Framed

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Antique late 19th Century Indian Kalighat natural pigment watercolor painting on parchment paper of Krishna milking a cow under a … Read more Antique late 19th Century Indian Kalighat natural pigment watercolor painting on parchment paper of Krishna milking a cow under a Pipal tree. The cow is smiling at Krishna, with divine love. The cosmic dance of life represented in a symbolic message within the painting.
Framed in gold painted carved wood frame under glass.

Origins of Kalighat painting:
According to legend, Lord Shiva, the god of dance and destruction, was deep in meditation on Mount Kailash when he received news of the death of his consort, Sati, an avatar (or human manifestation) of the goddess Kali. He wandered for days with her body draped across his shoulders and his inconsolable grief threatened to ruin the earth. Lord Vishnu, the Preserver, was called upon to intervene. To relieve Shiva's burden, he shattered Sati's body into 51 pieces. The little toe of Sati's right foot was said to have fallen at the site of the Hooghly River, and from this point on the area became associated with the goddess Kali. By the 1690s, when it became part of the city of Kolkata, it was already known as the sacred realm of Kali or Kalikshetra. The moorings (ghat in Bengali) on the bank of the Hooghly River were known to pilgrims as Kalighat, and there was perhaps an early version of a temple at the spot in the 17th and 18th centuries. By the early 19th century, the temple was a popular destination for local people, pilgrims and interested European visitors.

As Kolkata developed into a busy and thriving industrial harbour city, migrants began arriving looking for new opportunities. Among these were various artisans, craftsmen and painters from various parts of India, including patuas, members of an artisan community from West Bengal. Kalighat, with its daily hordes of pilgrims, would have provided a perfect opportunity for the local artists to produce and sell small religious souvenirs. The patua painters traditionally painted long narrative stories, often over 20 feet in length. Influenced by the different art forms around them and with a need to work quickly, the patuas abandoned their linear, narrative style in favour of single pictures involving one or two figures. The backgrounds were left plain, all non-essential details removed, and basic combinations of colours were used. This created the key characteristics of the Kalighat genre.
The paintings attracted the interest of many foreign travellers who visited the city in the 19th century. As examples of 'oriental' or 'exotic' souvenirs, Kalighat paintings were perfect – easily portable and concise enough to explain to friends back home. See less