INDIA, UTTAR PRADESH, 10TH CENTURY

Details

A Buff Sandstone Frieze of Vishnu, Lakshmi, Shiva and Parvati
India, Uttar Pradesh, 10th Century
Well and expressively carved with Vishnu and his consort Lakshmi embraced in elegant tribhanga, holding the mace and conch and with Chakrapurusha as the personified wheel at Lakshmi's side, accompanied to the right slightly recessed by Shiva and Parvati in corresponding stance, flanked by diminutive figures of Nandi, Ganesha and Skanda wearing diaphanous dhotis, garlands and beaded necklaces, and bearing their respective attributes, carved at the top with a frieze of the Avatars of Vishnu, and the nine planetary deities to the right led by the sun god Surya
32 in. (81.2 cm.) high

Lot Essay

The present frieze represents Indian medieval sculpture at its best, with the graceful repetition of linear rhythm. The divine couples stand as a symbol of inseparable unity and love, where one cannot exist without the other.

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