Krishna confers with Balarama

On a garden terrace, the Hindu god Krishna, seated on the right, faces his elder brother and loyal companion, Balarama. The brothers were grandsons of the king of Mathura in northern India. They are depicted in a royal garden with courtiers and attendants, and the figural placement follows the convention of a formal audience scene. Several ladies look on from the women’s quarters on the far side of the garden wall. A large white canopy offers cool shade from the sun, while the different lattice patterns of the perforated screens, known as jalis, add an attractive architectural interest to the terrace. The pink blossoms that flank the terrace are repeated as a design for the yellow floor spread—a pictorial device that links real and simulated nature.