Shadow puppet, cut and painted hide depicting Ravana - with ten faces. Two moveable arms, one hand carrying a knife, plus six other pairs of arms.
This puppet would have been used for making shadow plays that tell the story of the Ramayana. The puppet would be held behind a large flat screen, which is backlit by a large light (traditionally an oil lamp, but electric lights are now common) to create the shadow on the screen. The puppeteer controls the puppet with the bamboo rods attached to its body and limbs.
