Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana in Exile

This scene from the Ramayana epic evokes the melancholy of exile as Rama, his wife Sita, and his brother Lakshmana embark on fourteen years of wandering in the forests of southern India following their banishment from court. Before Rama’s eventual return to the capital, where he is crowned the rightful ruler of Ayodhya, the party must overcome many challenges, including Sita’s abduction by the demon-king Ravana and the war waged to secure her recovery. As the model of a marriage tested through hardship, Rama and Sita proved a popular subject for images that were displayed in the home. Notably, this work carries the colophon, “Printed in Germany.” Lithography was invented in Germany, and the country became an important supplier of prints, inks, and other art supplies for the Indian market.