Object Details
Label
Chola queen Sembiyan Mahadevi, whose husband reigned 949-57, was widowed at an early age and was a highly respected patron of the arts who devoted most of her life to temple commissions. During her lifetime, special celebrations marked her birthday in the Shiva temple in the town of Sembiyan Mahadevi, named after her, and a metal portrait of the beloved queen was presented to the temple in her honor. It is possible that the image seen here is that very sculpture. Draped in silks, precious jewelry, and flower garlands, this processional figure would have been carried through the town for public viewing.
This highly stylized image is an instance of the blurring of lines between royal and divine portraiture in ancient Indian art. While the pose is reminiscent of the goddess Parvati, this tall, svelte image with heavy, naturalistically shaped breasts and drapery clinging to her lower limbs is uncommonly individualized in the shape of her face, pursed lips, and long nose. Stylized portrait statues like this were more likely to be identified by their placement in a temple, or their function in specific rituals, than through an actual resemblance to their human counterparts. As such, it would have been recognized as Sembiyan Mahadevi by its use in processions celebrating her birthday.
Provenance
?-1929
Hagop Kevorkian, New York, likely purchased in Europe from an unknown source [1]
From 1929
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Hagop Kevorkian, New York [2]
Notes:
[1] Hagop Kevorkian (1872-1962) is best known as a dealer in Islamic art but he also dealt with some Indian sculpture and paintings. Born in Kayseri (present-day Turkey), he began his self-named art business in London by the 1890s and later expanded operations to Paris, with his brother Carnig (alt. Carneg) Kevorkian. He subsequently established a third location in New York after he settled there in 1920.
While the identity of the source from whom Kevorkian purchased this sculpture, the place of transaction or the find-site location are subjects of ongoing research, Vidya Dehejia's research places it in the Kailasanatha Swamy Sivan Temple in Nagapattinam (See The Thief Who Stole My Heart: The Material Life of Sacred Bronzes from Chola India, 855--1280 (2021)). There is no further evidence for a connection with this temple, and the presence of surface encrustation on the object suggests that this sculpture was not in
ritual use at or around the time it appeared on the art market. See reports in the object file.
[2] In a letter addressed to Freer Gallery of Art curator John E. Lodge (1876-1942), dated March 6, 1929, Hagop Kevorkian introduced this sculpture to the museum's attention and mentioned he had it stored in a safety deposit vault in Paris.
In a subsequent letter dated June 11, 1929, Kevorkian reported that the sculpture had arrived in New York from Paris on the ship S.S. Paris and was currently in his possession in New York. See documents in the object file.
See also invoice dated July 19, 1929, issued by Hagop Kevorkian and approved on August 5, 1929, copy in the object file.
Research updated March 14, 2023
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Exhibition History
Body Image (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)
The Thief Who Stole My Heart: The Material Life of Sacred Bronzes in Chola India ca. 850-1280 (Monday, March 14, 2016 - Monday, January 30, 2017)
Arts of the Indian Subcontinent and the Himalayas (October 16, 2004 to January 3, 2016)
The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India (November 10, 2002 to March 9, 2003)
South Asian Sculpture (February 22, 2000 to June 18, 2003)
South and South East Asian Art (May 9, 1993 to February 7, 2000)
Sculpture of South Asia and the Himalayas (May 4, 1988 to July 9, 2017)
The Arts of South Asia (May 13, 1985 to December 2, 1985)
The Ramayana (July 18, 1983 to April 15, 1984)
Hindu and Buddhist Art (April 1, 1982 to July 18, 1983)
Hindu and Buddhist Art (January 28, 1981 to September 24, 1981)
Indian Art (January 1, 1963 to January 28, 1981)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Art, Gallery 8 (July 15, 1958 to January 1, 1963)
Centennial Exhibition, West Corridor (February 25, 1956 to July 11, 1958)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Painting, 1955 (October 24, 1955 to November 28, 1955)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Paintings and Sculpture (October 2, 1947 to February 25, 1956)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Paintings, Gallery 7 (January 10, 1945 to October 2, 1947)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Paintings, Gallery 4 (May 5, 1933 to January 9, 1945)
Untitled Exhibition, Persian Art (March 14, 1931 to May 5, 1933)
Untitled Exhibition, South Asian and Persian Art (March 24, 1930 to March 14, 1931)
Previous custodian or owner
Hagop Kevorkian (1872-1962)
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Date
10th century
Period
Chola dynasty, Reign of Queen Sembiyan Mahadevi
Accession Number
F1929.84
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Type
Sculpture
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
H x W x D: 107.3 x 33.4 x 25.7 cm (42 1/4 x 13 1/8 x 10 1/8 in)
Origin
Tamil Nadu state, India
On View
West Building (Freer Gallery of Art), Gallery 01: Body Image: Arts of the Indian Subcontinent
Related Online Resources
Google Arts & Culture
See more items in
National Museum of Asian Art
Data Source
National Museum of Asian Art
Topic
casting
metal
bronze
Hinduism
Parvati
Uma
Chola dynasty (850 - 1280)
India
queen
kataka mudra
South Asian and Himalayan Art
Link to Original Record
Record ID
fsg_F1929.84