Santhal Pat or Story Scroll

A bull, a few farmers, and a man balancing two baskets on a pole, all in one long column.

This pat or story scroll is Santhal, from Bihar and Jharkhand, India, and dates to the 19th through the mid 20th century. It is painted paper. Santhal scrolls are generally associated with itinerant painters who unrolled them panel by panel while singing the story. Figures in loincloths and saris fill the panels in black ink and flat color. A bull and a cow appear toward the top, trees and plants divide the scenes, and a line of walkers fills the lowest panel. The lower end is stained. It is 7 inches wide by 29.75 long.

The story is told top to bottom, with no spoilers.