Description
The seated monkey king Sugriva presents the “fear not” gesture with his right hand. He served as Rama’s faithful ally during the war against Ravana. This work appears to have been made for French Jesuit missionaries by South Indian temple muralists. During the 1700s, missionaries commissioned sets of paintings from which they learned about the gods and literary figures popular among the people of the region.
Provenance
(R. E. Lewis, Inc., San Francisco, CA); William E. Ward [1922–2004] and Ellen Svec Ward [1921–1989], Solon, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?–1975); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1975–)
Accession Number
1975.73
Medium
Gum tempera, ink, and hand-colored silver paper appliqué on paper
Dimensions
Overall: 35.5 x 23.5 cm (14 x 9 1/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. William E. Ward
