Palace and the Dutch Palace, is located in Kochi, a port
city on the western coast of India. Kochi (or Cochin)
has a long history in the story of Indian colonialism—
in fact, it was the location of the first formal European
settlement in India, after the Portuguese arrived there in
1500. The Portuguese were superseded by the Dutch in
the mid-seventeenth century, who were in turn followed
by the British in the nineteenth.
The palace was originally built by the Portuguese as
a gift for the Raja of Kochi around 1555.29 The Portuguese had plundered a nearby temple, and the palace was
intended as a peace offering. The palace was renovated
under the Dutch in 1663, and since that date has been
known popularly as the Dutch Palace. The palace’s main
architectural significance lies in the fact that it is one
of the oldest examples of Portuguese architecture which
shows Indian influence in its design and decoration. In
this way it is a unique structure.
The basic plan of the palace follows a traditional Kerala design—it is a two-story quadrangular structure with
long interior halls and a central courtyard space. Within
the courtyard sits a temple dedicated to Pazhayannur
Bhagavati, the patron goddess of the royal family of
Kochi. The upper story of the building includes a coronation hall, a bed chamber, a ladies chamber, and the
dining hall.
The palace was restored in 1951. At that time it was
classified as a centrally protected monument. Recent restoration work has further enhanced and protected the
site, which, since 1985, has housed a museum. The museum presents a wide variety of items associated with the
royal family, including a series of portraits of the Kochin
kings, a group of ornately decorated palanquins and doli
(human-powered, wheel-less vehicles used for transporting the nobility), clothing and weaponry, as well as coins
and postal stamps issued by the Kochin kings.
Detail of a Wall Painting in the
Rajah’s Palace: Analysis
While the architecture of the palace is notable, and
the museum provides a fascinating view of the ruling
class of Kochi, the most significant aspect of this site is
the murals covering more than three thousand square
feet of interior wall space. These mythological murals are
considered some of the best in India.
The majority of the wall paintings were created when
the building was renovated by the Dutch in 1663. They
may be found in various rooms throughout the palace
and also in the stairwell connecting the first and second
stories of the building. Most of the imagery focuses on
depictions of Hindu gods and goddesses. Figures such
as Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna, and Durga make various appearances. The paintings illustrate various Purana tales,
as well as scenes from the Kumarasambhava and other
epic poems by the Sanskrit poet Kalidasa.
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The mural detail that we will examine here is from
the series of paintings that decorate the king’s bedchamber, which is placed upstairs at the southwest corner
of the palace. The room’s three hundred square feet of
wall space are covered with approximately forty-eight
individual paintings, all related to the narrative of the
Ramayana. These paintings are the oldest in the palace,
dating to the seventeenth century. They illustrate the
Ramayana epic in its entirety, from the birth of Rama
and his brothers to the return of Rama to Ayodhya. In
this detail Rama and Lakshmana are entering into an
alliance with the monkey king Sugriva.
In the poem, Rama and Lakshmana enter the monkey king’s territory. As they bathe in a nearby lake, he
watches them anxiously. According to the poem,
Sugriva worried “Who could these princes be
and why have they come to Rishyamuka Mountain?” Sugriva was seized by fear, thinking that
they could be allies of his brother Vali, who was
his enemy. “These two princes have been sent by
Vali to kill me,” Sugriva told his ministers. “See!
Although they are disguised as mendicants, they
are carrying bows and arrows.”30
Sugriva sends his attendant Hanuman to meet Rama
and Lakshmana. Hanuman brings them to the palace,
where they recount their story to the monkey king and
ask for his assistance. “Sugriva was overjoyed. He extended his hand in friendship and agreed to help Lord
Rama recover Sita.”31
In this very complex scene, we see the figures of
Rama, Lakshmana, King Sugriva, and Hanuman. As in
the other images in the cycle, Rama is identified by his
green skin. He is positioned to the lower left in our image, and he is presented with an expressionless face and
narrowed eyes. His serene presence is one of his most
important attributes, and we see it here in his generally
calm demeanor. He holds an arrow as described in the
poem, and he looks across to Sugriva who is made visually (and thus conceptually) prominent by his white skin
and reddish brown face.
Sugriva and Hanuman (who is seen in the upper left in
our image) are depicted with elongated noses and broad
upper jaws. These details are intended to show that they
are monkey figures. Lakshmana is seen in the center,
with bluish-green skin and wide open eyes. The bodies
of the figures are very difficult to distinguish, as they
overlap and are pressed closely together within the space
of the painting. A number of figures and objects surround this central group, adding to the visual complexity
and claustrophobic character of the image.
The figures wear extremely decorative costumes and
elaborate headdresses. We see the rich colors and strongly outlined forms that are typical of Kerala mural painting. The bodies, specifically the details of skin, show the
USAD Art Resource Guide • 2015-2016 • Revised Page