Panel from a temple hanging: recto: crowned god Balarama; verso: Vishnu

Object Details

• School/Tradition

  South Indian School

• Description

  The recto features the crowned figure of Balarama, half brother of god Krishna, who frequently features in south India as one of the ten incarnations of Vishnu. Holding his identifying attribute, the hala or ploughshare, Balarama directly faces the viewer, standing erect on a pedestal beneath a canopy of flower garlands and individual pendant flowers including full lotus buds. On the reverse is the standing form of the deep blue god Vishnu, in the form in which he is enshrined in the famous temple at Tirupati. Framed by a tiruvatchi or aureole crowned by a lion-head, he holds discus and conch shell in his two rear hands, while one front hand is in the varada gesture of wish-granting and the other rests lightly on his thigh.

• Collection

  National Museum of Asian Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Changing Tastes: Indian Paintings of the 18th and 19th Century (December 17, 2000 to July 15, 2001)

• Origin

  Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh state, India

• Credit Line

  Gift of Terence McInerney

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1730s

• Place

  Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh state, India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Vishnu, Cats, Art, Animals, Balarama, Varada mudra, Lotus

• Culture

  Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Object Type

  Paintings