Collection

Parvati, c. 11th century

Indian

Credit: Gift of Ben Heller

From the ninth to the thirteenth century, the Chola kingdom in South India originated a tradition of cast bronze Hindu sculpture in the round. Metal statues were used as icons and processional images in place of stone sculptures found in temples. Here, Parvati, the consort of Shiva, is the archetypal mother goddess and fertility image, elegantly poised and beautifully adorned in a diaphanous skirt and jewelry.

Provenance

Provenance

(sale, Sotheby’s, London, 14 July 1970, no. 26);

purchased by Scholer.

(Ben Heller, Inc., New York);

acquired by Kimbell Art Foundation, Fort Worth, 1970, gift of Ben Heller.