A Sandstone Figure of Vishnu in his Boar Incarnation

INDIA, RAJASTHAN, 11TH CENTURY

Details

A Sandstone Figure of Vishnu in his Boar Incarnation
India, Rajasthan, 11th Century
Well carved in openwork with the god with upraised boar's head holding his attributes of the chakra and conch shell, flanked by numerous nagas and naginis
21 in. (53.3 cm.) high

Lot Essay

Vishnu took the form of the boar-headed Varaha to free the world from a demon who had imprisoned the earth beneath the ocean. In the manifestation of a great boar he liberated the earth by rooting her free from the muddy sea bed, depicted on his arm at the upper right.

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