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Vishnu Riding on Garuda

dated 1004
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 252
This rare early example of Nepalese repoussé depicts the god Vishnu in flight astride his half-bird, half-human mount, Garuda. He displays a flaming discus, a club, and a conch. Atop his wings are diminutive figures of his wives. Vishnu was the premier deity of the North Indian Gupta clan, and Garuda their dynastic symbol—a royal association that continued with the Licchavi kingdom in Nepal. The inscription here refers to Vishnu Garudadhvaja (One Whose Banner is Garuda), the Gupta symbol. This relief, the oldest known example outside Nepal, served as a protective sheath for a stone icon of the same subject.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Vishnu Riding on Garuda
  • Date: dated 1004
  • Culture: Nepal
  • Medium: Gilt copper repoussé
  • Dimensions: H. 16 1/2 in. (41.9 cm); W. 11 5/8 in. (29.5 cm); D. 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Zimmerman Family Collection, Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace, Jeffrey B. Soref and Natalie Soref Gifts, 2012
  • Object Number: 2012.463
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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Vajracarya Priest's Crown
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Krishna subduing the Naga Kaliya, Gilt copper repoussé, Nepal
Krishna subduing the Naga Kaliya
Nepal
17th century
Tara, the Buddhist Savior, Gilt copper alloy with color and semiprecious stone inlay, Nepal, Kathmandu Valley
Tara, the Buddhist Savior
Nepal, Kathmandu Valley
14th century
Vajracarya Priest's Crown, Copper, gold, crystal, turquoise, Nepalese
Vajracarya Priest's Crown
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ca. 13th century
Laudomia de' Medici, Head: silver-gilt (cast, probably repoussé); torso: crystal; plinth: cast silver, Italian or French
Laudomia de' Medici
Italian or French
early 19th century, crystal bust possibly 17th or 18th century

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