Twenty-Armed Dancing God Ganesha, Remover of Obstacles

10th century

India
Madhya Pradesh

Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati, is one of South Asia’s most popular deities. Venerated as the “Remover of Obstacles,” the portly god is here shown mid-step performing an exuberant dance while heavenly musicians play instruments at the corners of the frame. Beside Ganesha’s lifted left foot, his rat vahana (mount) peers up at him in adoration. In a feat of artistic virtuosity, the sculptor has carved twenty arms on this Ganesha, which is remarkable both for its quality and iconography. The image originally occupied an exterior wall niche of a temple, perhaps one dedicated to his father Shiva.

Status: On View, Gallery 141
Department: Arts of Asia

Title: Twenty-Armed Dancing God Ganesha, Remover of Obstacles
Place: Madhya Pradesh (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.: 901 CE–1000
Medium: Sandstone
Dimensions: 67.6 × 42 × 21 cm (26 5/8 × 16 1/2 × 8 1/4 in.)
Credit Line: James W. and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection. Gift of Marilynn Alsdorf
Reference Number: 2021.199
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/148369/manifest.json

Forrest McGill, ed. Beyond Bollywood: 2000 Years of Dance in the Arts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayan Region (San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2002), 231, cat. 102.
Vishakha N. Desai and Darielle Mason, eds. Gods, Guardians, and Lovers: Temple Sculptures from North India A.D. 700–1200 (New York/Ahmedabad: The Asia Society Galleries in association with Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd., 1993), 167–9, pl. 17.
Pratapaditya Pal, “May the Immeasurable Wealth of Your Dance Fill My Consciousness: Dancing Deities of India,” Orientations 28, no. 7 (Jul./Aug. 1997): 34–5, fig. 13.
Pratapaditya Pal, A Collecting Odyssey: Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian Art from the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection, cat. (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago in association with Thames and Hudson, 1997), 62 (ill.), 287–288, cat. 72.
Madhuvanti Ghose, “Mediaeval Masterpieces: Indian Sculpture of the 9th to 13th Century,” Orientations 42, no. 3 (Apr. 2011): 26–31, fig. 3.

Cincinnatti, OH, Cincinnatti Art Museum, Beyond Bollywood: 2000 Years of Dance in the Arts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayan Region , Nov. 11, 2022- Feb. 5, 2023; San Francisco, CA, Asian Art Museum, Mar. 31- July 10, 2023, cat. 102.
New York, NY, Asia Society Galleries, Gods, Guardians, and Lovers: Temple Sculptures from North India A.D. 700–1200, Mar. 31–Aug. 15, 1993; Kansas City, MO, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Oct. 10–Nov. 28, 1993.
Art Institute of Chicago, A Collecting Odyssey: Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian Art from the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection, Aug. 2–Oct. 26, 1997, cat. 72.
Memphis, TN, The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Realm of the Gods: Masterpieces of Indian Sculpture from The Art Institute of Chicago and The Alsdorf Collection, Apr. 30–July 23, 2000, no cat. no.

With Spink & Son, London, by Apr. 26, 1985 [this and the following according to invoice from Spink & Son, Apr. 26, 1985; copy in curatorial object file]; sold to James W. Alsdorf (1913–1990) and Marilynn B. Alsdorf (1925–2019), Winnetka and Chicago, IL, Apr. 26, 1985; by descent to Marilynn B. Alsdorf, Chicago, 1990 [on long-term loan at the Art Institute of Chicago, July 15, 1997; publicly promised as a gift to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1997; signed a promised gift agreement for the work, 2002]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2021.

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Twenty-Armed Dancing God Ganesha, Remover of Obstacles

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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.

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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.

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