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Krishna Ferrying Radha Across the Yamuna River
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This image is taken from popular dramas where Krishna, lover of the cowgirls ( gopis ), disguises himself as a boatman to ferry a demure Radha, his favorite gopi. It depicts devotion and the intensity of separated lovers. The painting includes an image of another woman, dressed in white with shorn hair, possibly a widow. Krishna is portrayed as sporting a mustache and has a Prince Albert hairstyle.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineKrishna Ferrying Radha Across the Yamuna River, c. 1890. Eastern India, Bengal, Kolkata, Kalighat. Gum tempera, graphite, ink, and tin on paper; painting only: 44.5 x 28.3 cm (17 1/2 x 11 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward, 2003.130
Similar works
Krishna Ferrying Radha Across the Yamuna River (recto)
Krishna Ferrying Radha Across the Yamuna River (recto); Parivati Placing a Wedding Garland on Shiva (verso)
Krishna and Balarama depart Vrindavan
Vishnu and Lakshmi
Worship of the Infant Krishna, from a Kalighat album
The Infant Krishna Spirited Away by Vasudev, from a copy of the Dispersed Bhagavat Purana