Page 70 - 2020 Sept 22 Himalayin and Indian Works of Art Sotheby's NYC Asia Week

9/2/2020 Indian, Himalayan & Southeast Asian Works of Art | Sotheby's

Indian, Hi ma layan & Southeast Asian Works of Art
New York |22 Sep 2020 | 12:00 PM EDT

Lot 351

A BLACK STONE STELE DEPI CTING UM A-MAHESHVARA , INDIA , PALA PE RIOD, 12TH CENTURY
Estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 USD

PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE JAPANESE COLLECTOR
A BLACK STONE STELE DEPICTING UMA-MAHESHVARA
INDIA, PALA PERIOD, 12TH CENTURY

Height: 33 ½ in. (85 cm)

the divine couple seated in lalitasana on a lotus pedestal, each with one foot supported on a lotus footrest, Shiva's primary right
hand touching his consort's chin affectionately, the primary left hand cupping her breast, his upper hands holding a lotus
and trishula respectively, Uma with one arm draped around Shiva's shoulders, her left hand holding a mirror, their vehicles the bull
and the lion couchant below the throne, two flying apsaras centering a kirtimukha mask above

Provenance
Collection of a Japanese Diplomat, acquired in Bangladesh in the early 1970s

Catalogue Note
Uma-Maheshvara represents the sacred embrace, alingana, of the Lord Shiva joined with the Goddess Uma. The Great Ascetic,
Lord Shiva, who was overcome with the beauty of Uma, Daughter of the Mountain, succumbed to their union for the benefit of his
devotees (S. Kramrisch, Manifestations of Shiva, Philadelphia, 1981, p. 57). Their union is principally metaphysical, though during
the Pala period, Shiva and Uma's relationship can be most immediately observed through their corporeal interplay. It is through
their sensual relationship that they are meant to become a gateway for the devotee to enter their sacred realm.

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