Chariot composed of calculations, from an unidentified Jain manuscript

Some followers of the Jain religion were, and sometimes still are, interested in horoscopes, the calculation of auspicious dates, and the deriving of mathematical formulas thought to underlie the structures of the world.

We don’t know what the numbers and calculations shown here within the outline of a chariot signify. If you know, please email us at curators@asianart.org. (We may not be able to respond individually.)

This more than five-hundred-year-old painting shows characteristics of early western Indian manuscript art. The artist gives the horse and charioteer bold, easily readable silhouettes. Typical of the period are the pointy facial features of the charioteer and his “protruding eye:” the eye on the farther side of the face sticks out beyond the profile.