Enquiry about object: 9511
Western Indian Blackstone Head of Vishnu
Western India, probably Rajasthan circa 12th century
height: 26.5cm, width: 17.2cm (not including display stand)
Provenance
private UK collection since circa 2000; prior to that in a private Anglo-Dutch collection since circa 1990. Most probably has been in the UK or Europe since colonial times.
This beautiful head of Vishnu of polished, dark, hard, greenish blackstone is notable for its fine chiselling and superb detailing. It has been carved with a gently rounded face, full lips, elongated ears with large earrings, incised pupils in almond-shaped eyes beneath elegant arched brows in relief. The hairline is marked out by tight curls above which sits a hexagonal crown decorated with elaborate jewels and cross hatching. Short ribbons fly out from each side of the crown.
The image most probably is of Vishnu given the tall crown and its highly detailed and bejewelled nature as befitting a senior deity but it is possible that the figure could represent some other deity, such as Hari-Hara (a localised combining of the gods Shiva and Vishnu into one identity).
See lot 315 in Christie’s New York, ‘Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Works of Art’, March 15, 2015 for a very similar example attributed to 12th century Western Rajasthan. A related example comprises lot 32, ‘Sotheby’s New York, ‘Indian & Southeast Asian Art’, March 24, 2004.
The head is mounted on a custom-made, black, metal display stand.
Overall, this is a very decorative item.
References
Bromberg, A., et al., The Arts of India, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas: At the Dallas Museum of Art, Yale University Press, 2013.
Desai, K., Jewels on the Crescent: Masterpieces of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mapin, 2002.
