Durga Mahishasuramardini ("Slayer of the Buffalo Demon")

Object Details

• Provenance

  To 1914

  D. Komter, Amsterdam, to 1914 [1]

  From 1914 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from D. Komter in 1914 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 520, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas (March 25, 2023 - ongoing)

  Power in Southeast Asia (October 14, 2017 to March 13, 2020)

  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)

• Previous custodian or owner

  D. Komter (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  Java, Indonesia

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Sculpture

• On View

  Sackler Gallery 22a: The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas

• Restrictions and Rights

  CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

  This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  800s

• Name

  Komter, D., Freer, Charles Lang

• Place

  Java, Indonesia

• Topic

  Art, Chakra, Demon, Gods, Death, Southeast Asian Art, Religion and Philosophy, Central Javanese period (600 - 799), Halo, Water buffalo, Devi (Hindu deity), Durga? (Hindu deity)

• Culture

  Southeast Asians, Hindus

• Object Type

  Sculpture

• On View

  Yes