The British Museum in London, is set to display Lord Krishna Devotional Textiles in its ‘Krishna and the Garden of Assam’ exhibition.
Assam, despite being little known outside the Northeast of India, was the centre of a vibrant culture of devotion to the Hindu Deity Krishna. The exhibit sees the first showcase in Britain of the impressive cultural history of Indian state through its intricate textiles
The main attraction at the exhibition includes the ‘Vrindavani Vastra’ which is comprised of twelve strips of woven silk and captioned with scenes from the life of Krishna. These scenes are recorded in the 10th century text, the Bhagavata Purana, depicting the story of the life of Lord Krishna from when he lived in Vrindavan.
The nine-meter-long masterpiece is the longest surviving artefact, dating back to the late 17th century and was made using a now extinct sophisticated weaving technology.
The exhibition will also display dance mask of crane-demon Bakasura and body mask of serpent-demon Kaliya, both also made in Assam. A Rasilia film wil
l also be viewed as well as an illustrated book titled “Krishna in the Garden of Assam” which will accompany the exhibition according to curator Richard Blurton.
Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism has commended The British Museum for showcasing the interesting Lord Krishna artefacts, stating “that art had a long and rich tradition in Hinduism and ancient Sanskrit.”
Elements of the exhibition will be shown at the Chepstow Museum following the London display.
