From the Jacket:

This book is on the drawings in the palmleaf manuscripts of Orissa drawn by the scribes-artists who had no family background of art, no training from any teacher.

These drawings are not drawn by pen or pencil but etched by the help of an iron needle called stylo on dry palmleaves.

They are based on the text of the manuscripts and the artists have shown their individuality in their drawings. They are successful in expressing their feelings through a few lines which they have drawn spontaneously but precisely within a limited space of one to two inches (which is the breadth of the palmleaf).

About the Author:

Dr. D. Patnaik was born in Orissa in the year 1918. he completed his graduation in painting from Calcutta. In general line he did graduation and obtained master's degree in Art History and Ph.D. from Banaras Hindu University. He taught Painting and Art History in the faculty of Fine Arts in B.H.U. and Kashi Vidyapith University of Varanasi for twenty-five years. He has written many articles on art subjects, written books on art and fiction. He is a well-known writer of books for children.

As he is painter, writer and an art historian he has nicely explained the source, secret and success of the illustrations in the palmleaf manuscripts. To understand the illustrations on has to understand the text of Oriya literature. Dr. Patnaik is well versed in Oriya literature, so he has explained the text to the reader clearly to understand the illustrations. He has also analysed the figures in such a way that the reader would enjoy the drawings and appreciate the skill of the artists in expressing the ideas.