- Title
- Desakhya Ragini, Third Wife of Hindola Raga, Folio from a Ragamala (Garland of Melodies)
- Date Made
- circa 1700-1730
- Medium
- Opaque watercolor, gold, silver, and ink on paper
- Dimensions
- Image: 10 1/4 x 10 1/8 in. (26.04 x 25.72 cm); Sheet: 14 1/2 x 11 7/8 in. (36.83 x 30.16 cm)
- Accession Number
- AC1999.127.43
- Collecting Area
- South and Southeast Asian Art
- Curatorial Notes
This painting is identified and described by the inscription in its header as representing Desakhya Ragini, a wife of Shri Raga, and describes her as a lovely woman wearing a sari in the Marathi fashion and performing an acrobatic movement on the upright pillar. Desakhya Ragini, which is more often classified as the third wife of Hindola Raga, is a late morning melody stressing the heroic sentiment. Depictions of Desakhya Ragini in the Rajasthani Tradition typically feature a group of male acrobats performing feats of strength and coordination. Occasionally, as shown here, women athletes are shown in place of their male counterparts in order to reconcile the traditional male quality of physical prowess with the feminine gender of the melody.
Here, the central acrobat climbs the pillar upside down while her counterparts spot her and herald her prowess. The feat is performed in the courtyard of a white marble palace. The bottom register is a row of cusped niches with painted murals or hung textiles depicting flowering plants in vases. In the central niche, the flowering plant is flanked by parrots. In the middle register, a bed chamber is shown beside the courtyard. The top register depicts an architectural dome, roof pavilions, and a view of the lush forest abound with peacocks and parrots that is beyond the palace. For a representation of Kanhra Ragini from the same series, see M.81.29.
- Selected Bibliography
- Pal, Pratapaditya; Markel, Stephen; Leoshko, Janice. Pleasure Gardens of the Mind: Indian Paintings from the Jane Greenough Green Collection. Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd.: Los Angeles, 1993.
- Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Paintings from Staff Collections. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1973.
