Agamani

ca. 1878–83

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 251

A central theme celebrated in the autumnal Durga Puja festival in the Bengal region is the return of Uma (Parvati) to her parental home. Here, we see the arrival of Uma as she cradles the infant Ganesha atop her lion. Her mother and maid servants, Jaya and Vijaya, rush forward to greet them. Nandi, the bearded ascetic carrying a trident (trisula), has accompanied Uma and Ganesha on their journey. In Bengali tradition, a new bride leaves her family and enters the household of her husband. Homecomings were rare, and were therefore occasions for much celebration, particularly when a daughter returned home to present her newborn. A genre of vernacular Bengali songs known as the Agamani-Vijaya emerged around this theme and are widely recited during Durga Puja. The Calcutta Art Studio artists brilliantly captured the social tensions that surround this subject.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Agamani
Date: ca. 1878–83
Culture: West Bengal, Kolkata
Medium: Lithograph with black ink, watercolor, and varnish on paper
Dimensions: Sheet: 16 1/8 × 21 1/2 in. (41 × 54.6 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Purchase, The Kipper Family Foundation Gift, 2021
Object Number: 2021.212
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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