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Goddess Vajravarahi Dancing with Chopper (karttrika) and Skullcup (kapala)

A work made of bronze with gold paint and pigment.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of bronze with gold paint and pigment.

Date:

15th century

Artist:

Tibet
Central Tibet

About this artwork

The goddess Vajravarahi, one of the many manifestations of Vajrayogini, a tantric female Buddha, is so called because she has a tiny sow’s head (varahi) above her right ear. The wild boar, a ferocious, aggressive animal symbolizes her relentless power to achieve liberation, overcoming all obstacles. She usually dances upon a corpse, absent here, and holds a flaying knife (kartrika) in her raised right hand and a skull cup (kapala) in her left. She is the consort to the god Samvara and is one of the few goddess-spouses to enjoy an independent cult status. She is especially revered by the Drukpas, a sub-sect of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of Asia

Title

Goddess Vajravarahi Dancing with Chopper (karttrika) and Skullcup (kapala)

Place

Central Tibet (Influence from)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1401–1500

Medium

Bronze with gold paint and pigment

Dimensions

11.8 × 6.9 × 3.3 cm (4 5/8 × 2 11/16 × 1 5/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Marilynn B. Alsdorf

Reference Number

2014.1015

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/144903/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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