Das Avataras, Ten Incarnations of Vishnu (verso), from a Kalighat album

About the Artwork

This hastily hand-colored woodcut depicts a set of ten avatars, or incarnations, of the Hindu god Vishnu as recognized in 1800s Bengal. In each avatar, Vishnu descended to earth in order restore balance and order to the world. In the top register, from left to right, are Vishnu’s avatars as fish, tortoise, boar, man-lion, and Brahmin. Below are Parashurama, Rama, Krishna, Jagannath, and Kalki. The image of Rama shows him after his victory over the demon Ravana. He sits with Sita, crowned, holding bow and arrow. His monkey general Hanuman stands before him in a gesture of adoration.

Provenance

?–2003: William E. Ward [1922–2004], Solon, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art 2003–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

Imagining Rama’s Journey. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 10-September 17, 2023).

Quick Overview

Artist: Shri Gobinda Chandra Roy (Indian, active late 1800s)
Date: c. 1890
Medium: Woodcut, hand colored with gum tempera
Dimensions: Secondary Support: 29.9 x 48.5 cm (11 3/4 x 19 1/8 in.); Painting only: 28.3 x 42.7 cm (11 1/8 x 16 13/16 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Credit line: Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward
Accession no.: 2003.114.b

More by Shri Gobinda Chandra Roy in museum collections

Battle Scene at Kurukshetra from the Mahabharata War (verso), from a Kalighat album
Shri Gobinda Chandra Roy
c. 1890 · Painting
Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of ArtAT-00010582
Krishna weighed against precious objects(?) (verso), from a Kalighat album
Shri Gobinda Chandra Roy
c. 1890 · Painting
Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of ArtAT-00010609

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.