Emblem of the God Shiva with One Face (Ekamukhalinga)

c. 6th century

India
Madhya Pradesh

Enshrined in the innermost sanctums of temples dedicated to Shiva throughout southern Asia, lingas are phallic emblems of the deity’s cosmic, procreative powers. Shiva is regarded as possessing five faces or aspects, and lingas sometimes contain anthropomorphic depictions of one, four, or five of these faces. The head on this ekamukhalinga (single-faced linga) displays many of Shiva’s identifying traits, such as the prominent vertical third eye, the matted hair indicative of his ascetic practice, and the crescent moon affixed above his left forehead.

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

Title: Emblem of the God Shiva with One Face (Ekamukhalinga)
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.: 501 CE–600 CE
Medium: Sandstone
Dimensions: 49.3 × 15.6 × 17.5 cm (19 3/8 × 6 1/8 × 6 7/8 in.)
Credit Line: James W. and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection. Gift of Marilynn Alsdorf
Reference Number: 2021.241
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/151090/manifest.json

Pratapaditya Pal, The Ideal Image. The Gupta Sculptural Tradition and Its Influence (New York: The Asia Society/John Weatherhill, Inc., 1978), 101, cat. 51.
Stella Kramrisch, Manifestations of Shiva (Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1981), 5, cat. 4.
Pratapaditya Pal with contributions by Stephen Little, A Collecting Odyssey: Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian Art from the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago in association with Thames and Hudson, 1997), 14 (ill.), 272–73, cat. 5.

New York, The Asia Society, The Ideal Image: The Gupta Sculptural Tradition and Its Influence, Oct. 5– Dec. 3, 1978, cat. 51.
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Manifestations of Shiva, Mar. 29–June 7, 1981, cat. 4; Fort Worth, TX, Kimbell Art Museum, Aug. 1–Sept. 27, 1981; Seattle Art Museum, Nov. 25, 1981–Jan. 31, 1982; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Mar. 23–May 5, 1982.
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. 5.

James W. Alsdorf (1913–1990) and Marilynn B. Alsdorf (1925–2019), Winnetka and Chicago, IL, by Oct. 5, 1978 [New York 1978]; by descent to Marilynn B. Alsdorf, Chicago, 1990 [on long-term loan at the Art Institute of Chicago, Sept. 17, 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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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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Emblem of the God Shiva with One Face (Ekamukhalinga)

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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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