ANTIQUE 19thC INDIAN SOLID SILVER SHIVA MUKHA-LINGA MASK, MAHARASHTRA c.1860
19th Century Indian silver repousse decorated mask cover (mukha-linga) originating from Maharashtra (Western Indian), depicting the Hindu God Shiva (Shiva is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being within Shaivism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Shiva is the "destroyer of evil and the transformer" within the Trimurti, the Hindu trinity that includes Brahma and Vishnu).
REFERENCE NUMBER: A5301
DESCRIPTION
Antique 19th Century Indian very rare and unusual solid silver repousse decorated mask cover (mukha-linga) originating from Maharashtra (Western Indian), depicting the Hindu God Shiva (Shiva is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being within Shaivism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Shiva is the "destroyer of evil and the transformer" within the Trimurti, the Hindu trinity that includes Brahma and Vishnu).
The mask in the form of Virabhadra (a fearsome warrior form of the Hindu god Shiva. He was created by the wrath of Shiva and destroyed the Yagna (fire sacrifice) of Daksha, after Daksha's daughter and Shiva's consort Sati self-immolated in the sacrificial fire. He is described as a warrior who eventually blinded Bhaga, subdued Indra and broke, among many other countless gods) the mask is a great representation of this warrior, the face with wide open eyes, stiff lips and big mustache, the head elaborately ornamented with a stylised crown shaped like a Amalaka with a deity below. (An amalaka, is a segmented or notched stone disk, usually with ridges on the rim, that sits on the top of a Hindu temple's shikhara or main tower. According to one interpretation, the amalaka represents a lotus, and thus the symbolic seat for the deity below)
CONDITION
In Excellent Condition - No Damage.
SIZE
Height: 32cm
Width: 19cm
Weight: 435g
