ATTRIBUTED TO THE WORKSHOP OF PURKHU, KANGRA, PUNJAB HILLS, NORTH INDIA, CIRCA 1820

The chakravyuha was a military formation created by the guru Drona on the thirteenth day of the Mahabharata war to protect the Kaurava forces. Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna, managed to enter the chakravyuha with the hope that the rest of the Pandava forces will follow him and break the formation from the inside. Abhimanyu is depicted twice in this action-packed painting, he is in the centre about to strike Ashvatthama, the son of Drona, with a mace. He is also depicted in the lower centre having struck Kaliketa, a Kaurava, who falls back in his chariot covered with blood. The Kaurava ally, Jaydratha, had been blessed with special powers on the battlefield by Lord Shiva. He used these powers to keep the Pandava forces at bay and prevented them from entering the chakravyuha. He is depicted on the right seated on an elephant. Abhimanyu soon found himself trapped as he did not know how to exit the formation. He managed to kill several Kaurava heroes before being brought to a brutal end himself. The death of Abhimanyu is narrated in the seventh book of the Mahabharata, canto 47 (Losty, 2017, pg.176).

For two similar battle-field scenes with Abhimanyu as protagonist, see Sotheby’s, New York, 15 December 1978, lot 180 and and Khandalavala, n.d. fig. 85, p.124. Our painting has been attributed to the workshop of the Kangra artist, Purkhu. The large format of the painting, the principal figures being bigger than the less important ones, the distinctive heavy beards and large moustaches are all characteristic of Purkhu’s workshop. For a brief note on Purkhu and his workshop and another painting attributed to them in this sale, see lot 117.