The Goddess worshipped by the sage Chyavana from a Tantric Devi series

This painting is unique in its depiction of Bhadrakali as a gentle goddess whose form, acording to the painted inscription on its reverse, “glows like a topaz.” She holds discus, conch shell, lotus and mace, all associated with the god Vishnu, and not seen in other paintings from the series. It would seem that she manifested in this form to rishi Chyavana, a Vaishnava and physician of great repute, seen before her on his deer skin seat.

Historical period(s)
ca. 1660-1670
Movement
Basohli Court
School
Pahari School
Medium
Opaque watercolor on paper, gold, silver, and beetle wing
Dimensions
H x W (painting): 17.9 × 21.4 cm (7 1/16 × 8 7/16 in)
Geography
India, Punjab Hills, Jammu and Kashmir, Basohli
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1997.8
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Album leaf with painting

Keywords
conch shell, Devi, India, lotus, mace, Rishi, sage, sudarshana chakra, tantra, Vishnu, worship
Provenance

1980
P. & D. Colnaghi & Co., London, 1980 [1]

Hashem Khosrovani, Geneva [2]

From 1997
Freer Gallery of Art, "Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures," Sotheby's, London, April 23, 1997, lot no. 8 [3]

Notes:

[1] According to Curatorial Note 3 in the object record.

[2] See note 1.

[3] See note 1.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Sotheby's (London)
Hashem Khosrovani
P. & D. Colnaghi

Description

This painting is unique in its depiction of Bhadrakali as a gentle goddess whose form, acording to the painted inscription on its reverse, "glows like a topaz." She holds discus, conch shell, lotus and mace, all associated with the god Vishnu, and not seen in other paintings from the series. It would seem that she manifested in this form to rishi Chyavana, a Vaishnava and physician of great repute, seen before her on his deer skin seat.

Inscription(s)

1.(Sotheby, London Sale Catalog, 23 April 1997) Inscriptions in right and left border with inner black rule, inscriptions in right and left border in takri naming the sage as Chyavana and the Goddess as Bhadrakali, numbered 57 in left border, reverse with two lines of Sanskrit text in devanagari.

Published References
  • Sotheby's (London). Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures. London, April 24, 1997. lot 8, pp. 16-17.
  • B.N. Goswamy, Dr. Eberhard Fischer. Pahari-Meister: Höfische Malerei aus den Bergen Nord-Indiens. Publikation Nr. 6 der Rietberg-Serie zur indischen Kunst Zurich. cat. 8, pp. 38-39.
  • Patrick Malrieu. La gwerz de l'ermite poilu., 180. p.42.
  • Ideals of Beauty: Asian and American Art in the Freer and Sackler Galleries. Thames and Hudson World of Art London and Washington, 2010. pp. 116-117.
  • Vidya Dehejia, Thomas Coburn. Devi: The Great Goddess: Female Divinity in South Asian Art. Exh. cat. Washington, 1999. p. 129, fig. 3.
  • Thomas Lawton, Thomas W. Lentz. Beyond the Legacy: Anniversary Acquisitions for the Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. vol. 1 Washington, 1998. pp. 190-193.
Collection Area(s)
South Asian and Himalayan Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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