Durga holding the infant Krishna (Deva Gostha)

This print of Durga in her maternal aspect is a startling reflection of the evolution of worship in the Bengal region during the nineteenth century. The goddess, a consort of Shiva, is nursing the infant Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu. While Shiva and Vishnu represent alternative divine forces, this image “marries” the two gods by evoking their most familiar settings. Durga’s lion mount steps atop the snowy peaks of the Himalayas, Shiva’s abode, and the pastoral scene in the foreground recalls Krishna’s childhood among the cowherders at his adoptive home near Mathura. The curved framing device (chaalchitras) represents the portable shrines constructed for the Durga Puja festival in Kolkata.