Orissa, Puri District
Opaque water-based pigments and lacquer on cotton cloth
Balabhadra and Jagannatha, both in human form and riding two prancing horses, encounter a standing female figure with yellow skin and a pot of curds on her head. She greets them with folded arms. Balabhadra on a blue horse is dressed entirely in yellow and has white face, hands and feet and carries a long spear in his arms. Jagannatha, inversely, rides a white horse and is entirely in blue. Each has a round face and a conical headdress. In the middle of the two riders, is a green stem-like tree with intertwined branches and yellow flowers. The red background is painted with white flowers. The white crossed border is encompassed by a second border featuring yellow floral patterns.
The incident narrated here recounts how the milkmaid Manika received a ring from two mysterious riders. One rider was on a white horse, while the other rode a black horse. She was instructed to show the ring to Raja Purushottama Deva (1472-97), the ruler of Orissa, and inform him that she had witnessed the two horsemen heading southwards towards his enemy, the Raja of Kanchi (Conjeeveram). After previously seeking assistance from Jagannatha and receiving a promise of support, Purushottama Deva perceived the milkmaid’s arrival with the ring as a sign that Jagannatha and Balbhadra were riding to his aid. To commemorate this event, he renamed the village Manikpatana (Manikpatam).
Size (cms): 21(H) x 23.5(W)
Size (inches): 8.5(H) x 9.5(W)
