Shiva Nataraja

Historical period(s)
Chola dynasty, ca. 990
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
H x W x D (overall): 70.8 x 53.3 x 24.6 cm (27 7/8 x 21 x 9 11/16 in)
Geography
India, Tamil Nadu state
Credit Line
Purchase β€” Charles Lang Freer Endowment and funds provided by Margaret and George Haldeman
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F2003.2
On View Location
Freer Gallery 01: Body Image: Arts of the Indian Subcontinent
Classification(s)
Metalwork, Sculpture
Type

Figure

Keywords
Chola dynasty (850 - 1280), dance, India, lotus, Nataraja, Shiva
Provenance

To 1973
Rajrama Art Galleries, London, United Kingdom [1]

From 1973 to 2002
Doris Wiener Gallery, New York, New York, purchased from Rajrama Art Galleries, London, United Kingdom in 1973 [2]

From 2002
Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, purchased from Doris Wiener Gallery, New York, New York on July 2002 [3]

Notes:

[1] See invoice dated March 10, 1973 from Rajrama Art Galleries, London, copy in object file, Collections Management Office.

[2] According to the Purchase and Sale Agreement, Doris Wiener acquired the object in London and imported it into the United States in 1973. See invoice from Rajrama Art Galleries, London, copy in object file, Collections Management Office. See also the Purchase and Sale Agreement, object file, Collections Management Office.

According to Doris Wiener, she purchased the sculpture from Rajrama Art Galleries in 1972. In a letter from Doris Wiener to curator Vidya Dehejia, she writes, β€œThe sales invoice from the London dealer, Rajrama Art Gallery, from whom I acquired the sculpture. The invoice is dated March 10th, 1973. Please note that I viewed and purchased the piece in London in 1972, several months prior to the date of purchase on the invoice.” See letter from Doris Wiener dated November 16, 1995, copy in object file, Collections Management Office.

Furthermore, according to the Curatorial Justification written on June 19, 2002, β€œThe bronze has been in the collection of Doris Wiener Gallery in New York City since 1973; Pratapaditya Pal saw it at the gallery at that time.” The Curatorial Justification also notes that the importation papers dated 1972-3 were reviewed and found satisfactory and that β€œDr. R. Nagaswamy, who was the Director General of Archaeology of India during those years, has examined the Shiva Nataraja and assures us that it is not among those bronzes reported as stolen by Tamil Nadu temples.” See Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.

[3] The object was accepted into the Freer Study Collection on July 2002. On September 2003, it was transferred to the Permanent Collection of the Freer Gallery of Art. See Acquisition Consideration Form, original copy in object file, Collections Management Office.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Rajrama Art Galleries
Doris Wiener Gallery

Published References
  • Vidya Dehejia. The Thief Who Stole My Heart: The Material Life of Sacred Bronzes from Chola India, 855–1280. Princeton, NJ, May 2021. frontis, p. 116-117, and 283, fig. 4.16 a-b.
  • James T. Ulak. A Decade of Remarkable Growth: Acquisitions by the Freer and Sackler Galleries. vol. 166 no. 548 London, 2007. p. 39.
  • Vidya Dehejia. The Sensuous and The Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India. Exh. cat. New York, Seattle and London, 2002. cat. 1, pp. 94-97.
  • Ideals of Beauty: Asian and American Art in the Freer and Sackler Galleries. Thames and Hudson World of Art London and Washington, 2010. pp. 102-103.
Collection Area(s)
South Asian and Himalayan Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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