INDIA, MADHYA PRADESH, LATE 10TH/EARLY 11TH CENTURY

Details

A Sandstone Figure of a Celestial Woman beneath a Flowering Branch
India, Madhya Pradesh, Late 10th/Early 11th Century
Her voluptuous body elegantly swayed and adorned with beaded festoons and multiple necklaces, her face finely delineated, with slender almond-shaped eyes beneath gracefully arched brows, her hair neatly gathered in a jeweled bun, surmounted by a canopy formed by the leaves of a mango tree richly laden with fruit
31 in. (78.7 cm.) high

Provenance

Spink and Son, Ltd., acquired in July 1985

Literature

V. Desai and D. Mason (eds.), Gods, Guardians, and Lovers: Temple Sculptures from North India A.D. 700-1200, p. 213 and ill.

Exhibited

New York, The Asia Society Galleries; Kansas City, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, March - November 1993, Gods, Guardians, and Lovers: Temple Sculptures from North India, A.D. 700-1200, cat. no. 44.

Lot Essay

This figure of a Celestial woman would likely have formed a supportive pillar bracket in the porch of a temple structure. The inclined head and chest are consciously adjusted for a position overhead with her gentle glance ushering devotees towards the sanctum within.

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