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Gauranga Avatara/Kali

Published by: Calcutta Art Studio
Printed by: Calcutta Art Studio
Indian
About 1890

Medium/Technique Lithograph
Dimensions Height x width: 30.2 × 40.2 cm (11 7/8 × 15 13/16 in.)
Credit Line Marshall H. Gould Fund
Accession Number2017.3943
NOT ON VIEW
ClassificationsPrints
Gauranga Avatara is a depiction of the great 15th century Bengali saint Chaitanya as a six-armed figure encompassing Krishna and Rama. As the renouncer Chaitanya he carries the staff and waterpot of the mendicant. The "golden-bodied" saint stands with legs crossed (a posture typical of Krishna) on a lotus, situated on a balcony with theatrical curtains. Kali, shown naked, holds a severed head and a bloody cleaver. She wears a garland of skulls and a belt of severed arms. Her vehicle is the corpse. She stands atop a prostrate Shiva. Jackals accompany her.

InscriptionsLeft side:
Below image: title of print in English, Sanskrit and Bengali
At bottom: Calcutta Art Studio 185 Bowbazar St

Right side:
Below image: title of print in English, Sanskrit and Bengali
At bottom: Calcutta Art Studio 185 Bowbazar St
Provenance2015, purchased in Calcutta, India by Mark Baron and Elise Boisanté, New York; 2017, sold by Mark Baron and Elise Boisante to the MFA. (Accession date: October 11, 2017)