Add Or 3441

Scroll-painting, uncut, depicting the Baha festival.

By Jogendra Citrakar, village Jogidih, Dumka subdivision, Santal Parganas district, Bihar, 1945.

Water-colour; width 325 mm.

Collected by W.G. Archer, 1945. Purchased 1974.

1 Two majestic figures with large heads and closed legs standing on either side of a slightly smaller female figure with hands clasped before her; left figure with black face, arms and belly, right figure with white face and torso. Rudimentary arms sprouting from their shoulders.

Note: identified to Santals as Maran Buru, Jaher Era and Sin Cando.

2 A monkey-like figure with yellow scarf kneeling and addressing a goose-like bird with yellow legs and head and black and white plumage.

Note: Harur bonga addressing Garur bonga.

3 A red, three-headed four-armed figure seated on a black and white bird approached by a princely (?) figure with attendant.

Note: Sengel bonga approached by Indra Daman Raja with his attendant, Daban.

4 Four figures, three with arms upraised, the fourth beating a ‘tamak.’ Below, five panels, two white, three brown.

Note: Santal villagers proceeding to the sacred grove for the Baha festival, the panels three of which contain trees perhaps indicating the grove and the remaining two - white with diagonal lines - sacrificial spots.

5 The Baha festival. The priest with three other Santals entering the grove, indicated by a tree with birds.

6 The Baha festival. A leafy tree hung with four pieces of cloth. Below it, to the left, a drummer beating on a ‘tamak’ and a Santal blowing a buffalo horn; to the right, the priest sacrificing a fowl, another Santal blowing a horn, a fifth with upraised arm. At the top a tasselled canopy suggestive of a shrine.

7 The Baha festival. A leafy tree suggesting the sacred grove. On the left, two drummers; on the right, three Santal women with sal-tree sprigs in their hair, completing the bowing movement in the Baha dance.

8 The Baha festival. A leafy tree, the priest and two others accompanied by a drummer beating a ‘tamak’ returning from the grove after completing the Baha ceremonies.

9 The Baha festival. The priest holding a sprig of sal-tree blossom having his feet washed by a Santal girl on his return from the sacred grove. Behind him three other Santals, one playing a flute, another blowing on a buffalo horn.

10 The Baha festival. Three Santal women with sprigs of sal-tree blossom in their hair dancing at the Baha festival, a boy drumming on a ‘tumdak’’ hung behind his back.

11 The Baha festival. A bull led to a tree; a Santal holding its tail, another Santal about to fell it with the butt-end of an axe. Below a series of red rectangles like ladders on an ochre ground.

12 The Baha festival. A python accompanied by three Santals, the first of whom prepares to behead it with a knife.

13 The Baha festival. Three Santals making and drinking rice-beer.

14 The Baha festival. A Santal man drunk from too much rice-beer is supported by a Santal woman. To the left, another Santal girl looking on.