SOUTH INDIA, CHOLA PERIOD, 13TH CENTURY

Details

A bronze figure of Parvati
South India, Chola period, 13th century
Crisply cast and finely finished, standing in elegantly swaying tribhanga on a round base over a square plinth, wearing a long striated dhoti secured with a pendant belt around the waist, her curvaceous forms adorned with the sacred thread, multiple necklaces and armlets, her face with a graceful expression surmounted by a tiered conical headdress, with a rich green patina overall
20 5/8 in. (52.3 cm.) high

Provenance

Previously with the H. Stocklin Collection, Basel, March 1955
Acquired in Basel, June 2008

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Lot Essay

Parvati is the Hindu representation of female perfection in multiple identities as young maiden, wife, and mother. The present example is exceptionally well-cast and finished, each bead of her jewelry clearly defined and the striations of her dhoti hugging her undulating body in a natural yet idealized way that emphasizes her beauty, sensuality and fecundity. These endowments are not just physical but spiritual in envisioning the essence of the divine on a human scale.

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