Building the Bridge to Lanka

ca. 1800
Not on view
The monkey army is shown constructing a bridge to Lanka so that Sita can be rescued from the evil Ravana. Above, the monkey king Sugriva and his general Hanuman consult with Rama and Lakshmana, who sit in a nearby forest. Typical of late eighteenth-century Kangra painters, the artist devoted great attention to descriptive details and dramatized the composition by the use of the jutting rock formation that intercepts the composition diagonally, energizing the whole.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Building the Bridge to Lanka
  • Date: ca. 1800
  • Culture: India (Pahari Hills, Kangra)
  • Medium: Ink and wash with translucent watercolor on paper
  • Dimensions: 10 1/2 x 12 5/8 in. (26.7 x 32.1 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Gift of Subhash Kapoor, in memory of his parents, Smt Shashi Kanta and Shree Parshotam Ram Kapoor, 2008
  • Object Number: 2008.359.7
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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Building the Bridge to Lanka - India (Pahari Hills, Kangra) - The Metropolitan Museum of Art