- Title
- Jagannatha, Balabhadra, and Subhadra in the Jagannatha Temple
- Date Made
- circa 1875-1900
- Medium
- Opaque watercolor on cloth
- Dimensions
- Image (Image): 22 1/2 x 29 in. (57.15 x 73.66 cm)
Sheet (Sheet): 23 1/4 x 29 3/4 in. (59.055 x 75.565 cm)
Frame: 31 × 41 1/4 × 2 in. (78.74 × 104.78 × 5.08 cm)
- Accession Number
- M.82.107
- Collecting Area
- South and Southeast Asian Art
- Curatorial Notes
At the center of this detailed depiction of the Jagannath temple and its subsidiary shrines in Puri, Odisha (Orissa), stand its distinctive icons Jagannath (Krishna), Balabhadra (Balarama), and Subhadra (sister of Krishna and Balarama). The conch shell below the icons represents the land of Puri. The ten avatars of Vishnu are represented in a horizontal band to either side of the main deities, with Jagannath replacing the Buddha and Kalki represented simply by a white horse.
This type of Puri pilgrimage painting, with the images portrayed in a central shrine embedded in the sloping spire of the temple with subsidiary shrines and details included, was introduced during the 19th century. Paintings like this one were produced by the hundreds for sale to pilgrims as reminders of their visit to Puri during the Jagannath festival. It was customary for every pilgrim on returning from Puri to send one of these pictures and a few grains of the dried cooked rice from the temple, to his or her friends and relatives according to their means.
See also M.82.107, M.2003.215, and M.2006.180.3.
