NORTHEASTERN INDIA, PALA PERIOD, 11TH-12TH CENTURY

Vishnu stands in powerful samabhanga, holding a mace and discus in his upper hands and a conch shell and a lotus bud in his lower hands, flanked by Lakshmi and Sarasvati. Behind the female divinities are smaller figures known as ayudha purushas—anthropomorphic forms of the weapons Vishnu wields. Vishnu is richly adorned with elaborate jewelry, including anklets, a festooned triple-banded belt, a thick sacred thread or yajnopavita, bracelets, armlets, necklaces, earrings and a tall cone-shaped crown adorned with triangular petals.