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

Description

Antique late 19th Century Indian Kalighat natural pigment watercolor painting of Krishna milking a cow under a Pipal tree. The … more Antique late 19th Century Indian Kalighat natural pigment watercolor painting 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.

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. less