Pichwai Cow Wall Plate - 10-Inch Hand-Painted, 6 Designs

Why these work on a wall

460 g each - about a pound. That is the number that makes a gallery wall of these practical: a single small nail or a rated pushpin holds one, so you can hang five or six without touching a stud, and move them when the arrangement is wrong. The varnish coat is what keeps the paint from scuffing when you take them down and put them back up.

Which of the six

• Kamdhenu - the wish-granting cow of the Puranas, the mother of all cattle
• Cow Herd - several cows together beneath a flowering tree
• Sacred cow - a single cow, frontal, in the temple manner
• Lotus Cow - a cow among pink lotus blooms
• Mother Cow - a cow with her calf, red handprint marks alongside
• Dancing Cow - a cow in movement rather than repose

The palettes run across blue, deep green, black, red and golden yellow, so a pair or a trio gives you contrast without leaving the subject. Check the photographs for the exact colour of each design before choosing.

Where they go

Stair walls, entryway walls, above a console or a sideboard, in a kitchen nook, or filling the awkward vertical strip beside a doorway that nothing else fits. A single plate reads as an accent; three or more read as a collection. They also sit well interleaved with a wooden cow or elephant head from the same range.

The other plate designs

Twenty-one designs are spread across four listings, all the same 10-inch plate at the same price. This one carries six Pichwai cow designs. The others are the four Krishna, peacock and cow designs, the five deity and Vrindavan designs and the six boho portrait and elephant designs. Mix freely - they were made to hang together.

Hanging them

A hook is already fitted to the back of each plate. At 460 g a small nail or a heavy-duty pushpin is enough - no anchors needed. For a group, lay the plates out on the floor first and photograph the arrangement before you put a single hole in the wall.

Care

Wipe with a soft cloth. Glass cleaner applied to the cloth rather than sprayed will lift finger marks off the varnish. Do not soak them and do not put them in a dishwasher - they are painted MDF, not ceramic.