BALI, 1930s

pigment on European cotton cloth

152.0 x 128.0 cm

Estimate:
$2,000 - $4,000

Sold:
$4,800 (inc. BP)

Lot 177

Bomakawya, Langse

BALI

, 1930s

lot details

Bomakawya, Langse
BALI, 1930s
pigment on European cotton cloth
152.0 x 128.0 cm

The Bomakawya (or Bomantaka) is an epic narrative relating the battle between Kresna and the Boma. The top-right scene of the painting shows Kresna enter the battlefield. The left scene is the decisive battle between Kresna in his angry thousand-headed (pamurtian) form as Wisnu on his vehicle Garuda. Wisnu (Kresna) strikes Boma on the head and his crown falls off allowing Garuda to snatch the wijayamala flower and break his resistance. This small langse has a length of red and white printed cotton fabric attached along the bottom edge, enabling it to function as a screening curtain.