Krishna and Balarama within a Walled Palace: Page from a Dispersed Bhagavata Purana (Ancient Stories of Lord Vishnu)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The miniaturized scale of this highly structured painting is interesting for its narrative complexity. Processions of warriors, charioteers, and horsemen depart in four directions, while at the center, inside the fortified pavilion, sit Krishna and his brother Balarama. Blurring the boundary between the narrative and the devotional use of this painting is the veneration of an image of Krishna and his beloved, Radha, by a group of women who sit in the top room of the pavilion.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art