figure
- Museum number
- 1969,0115.1
- Title
- Object: bronze figure
- Description
-
Figure of the snake goddess (Manasā). The goddess is depicted enthroned and protected by a canopy of serpent heads. On her lap she cradles an infant who is similarly protected, while on the backplate, lotus blossoms are seen. These elements recall that in her myth, the goddess is associated both with granting children and with lotus ponds. The goddess wears a diaphanous robe, visible at the ankles, and elaborate jewellery at the neck, stomach and waist, and has large disc earrings. Made of cast bronze (the eyes are inlaid with silver).
- Production date
- 750 (circa)
- Dimensions
-
Height: 45.70 centimetres
-
Width: 210 millimetres
-
Depth: 115 millimetres
- Curator's comments
-
Blurton, 1997:
The precise dating of the bronze is not certain: the simplicity of the backplate would suggest a date at the earlier end of the range given here, but a date as late as the early tenth century has previously been suggested. Irrespective of the date, this is one of the earliest surviving bronze images of Manasā, whose cult is especially associated with eastern India, even today. The origins of the goddess' cult are not clear, but they are probably to be found in the ancient snake cults whose existence is testified by depictions of the nāgarājas and nāginīs in early Buddhist sculpture.
-
Blurton 2006:
Manasa, whose remit is the realm of snakes and serpents and who is depicted garlanded with or accompanied by them, is primarily a deity of eastern India. Her festival is held in the summer months, the time of the monsoon, when snakes are flushed up out of the ground by the rains. Her personality is both benign (she protects from snakes) and malevolent (she inflicts the deadly snake bite).
-
Blurton 1992:
The elongated halo connects this image with the metal workshops at the major Buddhist monastery at Nalanda, Bihar. Bronzes were produced in large quantities there from the 8th century to the 12th century.
- Location
- On display (G33/dc57b/s2)
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
26 Jul-18 Nov, 2007: Barcelona, CaixaForum, L'Escultura en els Temples Indis. L'Art de Devocio.
The Enduring Image (National Museum of India [New Delhi], Museum of Modern Art [Mumbai]), 1997-8.
- Acquisition date
- 1969
- Department
- Asia
- Registration number
- 1969,0115.1
