Page 110 - Bonhams March 22 2022 Indian and Himalayan Art NYC

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A SILVER OFFERING BOWL WITH SCENES OF THE RAMAYANA
BY MAUNG PO KIN, LOWER BURMA (MYANMAR), CIRCA 1900
The underside marked with the elite silversmith Maung Po Kin’s initials, “M.P.K.”.
5 3/4 in. (14.5 cm) high; 9 in. (23 cm) diameter;
36 troy oz (1,120 grams) weight
$10,000 - 15,000

Muang Po Kin won the silver medal for metalwork at the international Delhi Exhibition in 1902-
3. This exceptional offering bowl would showcase why. Sequenced in five scenes, the bowl
depicts an episode from Book I of Valmiki’s Ramayana, wherein King Dasharatha sends Prince
Rama to slay the ogress Tataka who has been tormenting the sage Vishvamitra. Maung Po Kin
adds definition to every vignette by way of a stippled background contrasting with his polished,
rounded figures in high relief. However, the artist’s creativity really shines through his imaginative
scene dividers. Toppling stacks of water rapids evoke Rama’s crossing of the Ganges and
Sarayu rivers, and several gnarled trees overlapping on a diagonal register, incorporating
European perspective, convey Rama’s distance travelled in and out of Tataka’s forest.

Consistent with Valmiki’s epic, Rama is shown hesitating before beheading the prostrating
ogress because the act runs counter to his ethics of non-violence towards women. Yet, the
sun blazing directly above her neck visualizes Vishvamitra’s blessing and Rama’s righteous
enactment of the Dharma by laying the Tataka asunder. Maung Po Kin’s inspired use of
landscape elements to impart narrative demonstrates that while the Ramayana’s popularity
as a court dance drama may have more directly inspired the story’s depiction on the greatest
number of offering bowls, others were dedicated to the didactic representations from
Ramayana literature which also experienced a great revival in poetry and prose in 19th-century
Burma.

Published:
Owens, Burmese Silver Art, pp.78 & 174-6, no.S140, figs.3.61 & 4.108-13.

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