A Serpent Protects Vasudeva Taking His Infant Son Krishna to Safety

Description

In the dead of night, Krishna was born to parents who were imprisoned by his evil uncle, the usurper King Kamsa. While a goddess compelled the guards to sleep, Krishna’s father, Vasudeva, in the middle of a storm, spirited the newborn to safety in a cowherd village, where he exchanged Krishna for another infant. In the morning, Kamsa murdered the infant he thought was the child of Vasudeva, and Krishna lived to be raised by the herders.

Provenance

William E. Ward [1922-2004], Solon, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?-2003); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (2003-)

A Serpent Protects Vasudeva Taking His Infant Son Krishna to Safety

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c. 1890

Accession Number

2003.153

Medium

Gum tempera, graphite, ink, and tin on paper

Dimensions

Painting only: 45 x 27.7 cm (17 11/16 x 10 7/8 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward