Buddhist Goddess

COLLECTION NAME:

The AMICA Library

mediaCollectionId

AMICO~1~1

The AMICA Library

Collection

true

AMICA ID:

ASIA.1979.084

amicoid

ASIA.1979.084

AMICA ID

false

AMICA Library Year:

1998

aly

1998

AMICA Library Year

false

Object Type:

Sculpture

oty

Sculpture

Object Type

false

Creator Nationality:

Asian; Southeast Asian; Indonesian

crc

Asian; Southeast Asian; Indonesian

Creator Nationality

false

Creator Name-CRT:

Indonesian

crt

Indonesian

Creator Name-CRT

false

Title:

Buddhist Goddess

otn

Buddhist Goddess

Title

false

View:

Full view

rid

Full view

View

false

Creation Date:

Shrivijayan style, 9th century

oct

Shrivijayan style, 9th century

Creation Date

false

Creation Start Date:

800

ocs

800

Creation Start Date

false

Creation End Date:

899

oce

899

Creation End Date

false

Materials and Techniques:

Copper alloy

omd

Copper alloy

Materials and Techniques

false

Creation Place:

Indonesia, Sumatra

ocp

Indonesia, Sumatra

Creation Place

false

Dimensions:

H. 6 1/4 in. (15.9 cm)

met

H. 6 1/4 in. (15.9 cm)

Dimensions

false

AMICA Contributor:

Asia Society

oon

Asia Society

AMICA Contributor

false

Owner Location:

New York, New York, USA

oop

New York, New York, USA

Owner Location

false

ID Number:

1979.084

ooa

1979.084

ID Number

false

Credit Line:

Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection

ooc

Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection

Credit Line

false

Rights:

http://www.asiasociety.org

orl

<a href="http://www.asiasociety.org"target="_new">http://www.asiasociety.org</a>

Rights

false

Context:

Shrivijaya was one of the greatest powers in Southeast Asia from the 7th through 9th centuries; inscriptions and other historical records suggest that it continued in some form until the 13th century. The city of Palembang on the island of Sumatra is generally accepted as the capital of Shrivijaya. The treatment of the details of the hairstyle and headdress of this sculpture of an eight-armed seated goddess suggests that this piece is an example of bronze sculpture from Sumatra. The depiction of her hair as a series of diagonal ribbonlike lines and the corkscew curls running along the sides of her topknot and falling over her shoulders is strikingly similar to that found in three 9th-century bronzes discovered in the Komering River at Palembang in 1930, works that continue to be linchpins for the study of sculpture from Sumatra. The representation of her diadem as a thin band with triangular shapes and the three-dimensionality of her armlets are also comparable to those of sculptures excavated in Sumatra. Finally, the static yet not stiff pose of the goddess and her high and extremely thin waist also point to a Sumatran provenance.

With the exception of the thunderbolt, or vajra, in her upper right hand, the attributes held by this goddess are too damaged to recognize with certainty, making the identification of this figure difficult. Her eight arms indicate that she is a goddess, likely a Buddhist one. Very little is known about the religion of Shrivijaya, but we do know that Sumatra was once a major center for the study of Esoteric Buddhism, the branch noted for its worship of female divinities.

cxd

Shrivijaya was one of the greatest powers in Southeast Asia from the 7th through 9th centuries; inscriptions and other historical records suggest that it continued in some form until the 13th century. The city of Palembang on the island of Sumatra is generally accepted as the capital of Shrivijaya. The treatment of the details of the hairstyle and headdress of this sculpture of an eight-armed seated goddess suggests that this piece is an example of bronze sculpture from Sumatra. The depiction of her hair as a series of diagonal ribbonlike lines and the corkscew curls running along the sides of her topknot and falling over her shoulders is strikingly similar to that found in three 9th-century bronzes discovered in the Komering River at Palembang in 1930, works that continue to be linchpins for the study of sculpture from Sumatra. The representation of her diadem as a thin band with triangular shapes and the three-dimensionality of her armlets are also comparable to those of sculptures excavated in Sumatra. Finally, the static yet not stiff pose of the goddess and her high and extremely thin waist also point to a Sumatran provenance.<P>With the exception of the thunderbolt, or <I>vajra</I>, in her upper right hand, the attributes held by this goddess are too damaged to recognize with certainty, making the identification of this figure difficult. Her eight arms indicate that she is a goddess, likely a Buddhist one. Very little is known about the religion of Shrivijaya, but we do know that Sumatra was once a major center for the study of Esoteric Buddhism, the branch noted for its worship of female divinities.</P>

Context

false

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Buddhist Goddess