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Plaque with Local Deity Ghantakarna and Spouse

A work made of gilt bronze.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of gilt bronze.

Date:

c. 1600

Artist:

Nepal
Kathmandu Valley

About this artwork

This small plaque, meant for a miniature shrine, most likely in the home, portrays Ghantakarna (“Bell-Eared”), a folk deity who became a manifestation or a companion of Kumara, the God of War. Like Kumara, Ghantakarna is seated on his vehicle, the peacock, while his spouse sits on his knee, supported by her vehicle, a crouching man. He holds various attributes in three of his arms: peacock feathers, a rooster, and a serpent. His fourth arm makes the gesture of reassurance. This folk deity, popular in the Kathmandu Valley, is worshipped for protecting cattle and warding off small-pox.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of Asia

Title

Plaque with Local Deity Ghantakarna and Spouse

Place

Kathmandu Valley (Object made in)

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.

1599–1699

Medium

Gilt bronze

Dimensions

7.3 × 5.4 × 1.3 cm (2 7/8 × 2 1/8 × 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Marilynn B. Alsdorf

Reference Number

2014.1050

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/144739/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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