The month of Vaisakh. April/may.
- Gallery: Room 33
- Maker: Keśavdās
- Made in: Bundi District
- Date: 1675-1700 (circa)
- Object type: album, painting
- Museum number: 1999,1202,0.5.7
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is "The Month of Vaisakh. April/May.", a vibrant painting that forms part of a set known as the "Baramasa" — a devotional cycle linking each month to the emotions and imagery of love and devotion.
The painting, created between 1675 and 1700 in Bundi District, captures a scene from the spring season, a time of love in union. You’ll see Kama, the God of Love, perched in the forest, loosing an arrow at Krishna and Radha. To the left, Radha holds her hand to her chest, as if echoing a verse: “the arrows of Kama are hard to bear in separation.” The composition is rich with life — from travelers in the foreground to women performing pūjā under a tree to peasants drawing water.
The work follows the Bundi style, known for its vivid colors and intricate details, suggesting it was the hand of a single master artist. The poem inscribed relates to the work of Keśavdās, a noted poet of the time, whose verses about love and devotion give this painting its narrative depth.
See it in person
The month of Vaisakh. April/may. is on display in Room 33 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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