This heroic representation of Vishnu wearing an elaborate crown stands on a plinth depicting the donor and his family flanking an auspicious vase of plenty (purnaghata). The dedicatory inscription identifies the donor as a minister of state, names the king he served, Simhadeva, and gives the place and date of dedication. The date coincides with Vishnu’s awakening after his annual four-month slumber, marking the end of the monsoon— an auspicious day to make a religious donation.
Details
- Title : Vishnu
- Year : Dated August 12, 1105
- Classification : Sculpture
- Medium : Copper alloy with gilding
- Dimension : H. 16 7/8 in. (42.9 cm); W. 7 1/8 in. (18.1 cm); D. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm)
- Accession No : 2015.678
- Country/ Geo-location : Nepal
- Collection : The Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Credit Line : Purchase, Louis V. Bell, Harris Brisbane Dick, Fletcher, and Rogers Funds and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, Brooke Russell Astor Bequest, The Vincent Astor Foundation and Mr. and Mrs. Richard L. Chilton Jr. Gifts, and The Fred Eychaner Charitable Fund Gift, in honor of John Guy, 2015
- Acquisition Method : Gift
- Status : On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 252
- Inscription : (Twelve-line donor inscription fills both the left and right sides of the plinth): In the auspicious year 226 [Nepal Samvat = 1105 C.E.] on the twelfth day of the bright half of the Kartika month, Sunday, Revati naksatra, in the reign of the great king Śri Śimvadeva, his minister Śrjayadhara Vada ritually consecrated [this image] of the supreme god Śrīvisnu in the Dev temple at the locality of Dolā Śikhara Nārāyana for the full moon day rite [called] Śrde(va)gañata. The festival to mark this important moment in the religious calendar of Nepal was here celebrated on Sunday the 12th day of August, 1105. The icon was offered to a now untraced shrine located at Dolā Śikhara Nārāyana [Vishnu tower hill]. [Translation by Dr. Gautama Vajracharya]
- Provenance : King of Nepal, His Majesty Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah (by 1965; given to Ronning); Chester Ronning , Camrose, Canada (1965 until d. 1984; by descent to daughter); Daughter of Chester Ronning (1984–2012, sold at Sotheby's New York); [ Sotheby's, New York , Indian and Southeast Asian works of art, March 21, 2012, lot 291]; Private collection , New York (2012–2014; consigned for sale at Carlton Rochell, New York); [ Carlton Rochell Ltd. , New York, 2012–2015, sold to MMA]