Odilon Redon
French, 1840­1916
Sîta
c. 1893
Pastel with touches of black conté crayon over various charcoals, on cream wove paper
53.6 x 37.7 cm
Joseph Winterbotham Collection, 1954.320

This dreamlike scene depicts Sîta, the faithful wife of the hero Rama in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Sîta was captured by a demon king and carried off through the skies. But she managed to tear off her overdress and jewels, and throw them down to earth, leaving a trail for Rama to find her. 

Redon described the image this way: “Her head surrounded by a golden-green radiance, against a blue sky, stardust falling, a shower of gold, under a sort of undersea mountain.”