Ceremonial cloth and sacred heirloom [mawa or ma'a] . This cloth depicts the final chaotic battle scene from the great Hindu epic, the Ramayana. In the centre, the large figures of the main protagonists — Rama, an incarnation of the god Vishnu and the hero of the tale, and the ten-headed demon king Ravana — confront one another. Their embattled soldiers struggle amid flying arrows and severed limbs. Rama’s main supporters — his brother Lakshmana and Hanuman, the leader of the monkey army — appear behind him on the viewer’s right. Rama wields the celestial bow and arrow with which he eventuall
Ceremonial cloth and sacred heirloom [mawa or ma'a] . This cloth depicts the final chaotic battle scene from the great Hindu epic, the Ramayana. In the centre, the large figures of the main protagonists — Rama, an incarnation of the god Vishnu and the hero of the tale, and the ten-headed demon king Ravana — confront one another. Their embattled soldiers struggle amid flying arrows and severed limbs. Rama’s main supporters — his brother Lakshmana and Hanuman, the leader of the monkey army — appear behind him on the viewer’s right. Rama wields the celestial bow and arrow with which he eventually defeats Ravana. The Ramayana is extremely popular in Southeast Asia, with scenes from the Indian epic appearing in many art forms. Large narrative cloths such as this were prized in Hindu Bali and also by the animist Toraja people of Sulawesi. (copied from museum text) . 18th century. 1203 Traded to Toraja people, Sulawesi, Indonesia - Ceremonial cloth and sacred heirloom (mawa or ma'a) - Google Art Project (717267)
Size: 3492px × 1432px
Photo credit: © The Picture Art Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., /, /., 18th, century.
