Art, Symbol & Imagination
Ravana Fighting Jatayu: K. Venkatappa’s Ramayana Plate
Original caption: Ravana and Jatayu
Jatayu’s spread wings interrupt the movement of Ravana and his captive Sita, turning the air itself into a battlefield. The crowded figures and sharply angled gestures make this one of the collection’s most forceful encounters. The aged bird challenges Ravana during the abduction and damages his weapons and vehicle before his own wings are cut. Venkatappa presents an act of resistance whose importance exceeds its immediate outcome: Jatayu cannot prevent the seizure, but his loyalty and later testimony connect the abduction to Rama’s search.
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Citation
K. Venkatappa. "Ravana Fighting Jatayu: K. Venkatappa’s Ramayana Plate" [source caption]. In Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists, Sister Nivedita and Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. Original scan, 1914, George G. Harrap & Co.. Source scan leaf 87. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/hindu-ravana-jatayu
Source details
Title from the printed caption. Editorial description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Artist credited in the printed list of illustrations. Full source leaf and the adjacent narrative reviewed; historical scan colour and texture retained.
Sources
From the book
Myths of the Hindus and BuddhistsSister Nivedita and Ananda K. Coomaraswamy1914More from this book
Garuda: Nanda Lal Bose’s Mythological Bird Figure
Rama’s Marriage: K. Venkatappa’s Ramayana Illustration
The Death of Maricha: K. Venkatappa’s IllustrationRelated illustrations
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Cite this illustration
K. Venkatappa. Ravana Fighting Jatayu: K. Venkatappa’s Ramayana Plate. Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists. Scan leaf 87. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/hindu-ravana-jatayu