Divine couple seated in a lotus blossom

Description

A gigantic, thousand-petaled lotus flower provides an intimate setting for the lovers. They sit on the seed pod of another full-blown lotus flower, which indicates their transcendent nature by elevating them from the mire of the earth.

Shown with full face forward in all white, the four-armed male deity has the all-seeing third eye in his brow and holds only a manuscript. The red goddess on his lap grasps a lotus flower in one hand, which communicates her benign and peaceful nature. At the bottom are offerings of flowers, incense, oil lamps, and jeweled cups of pure water or liquor.

Provenance

Mrs. A. Dean Perry [Helen Wade Greene Perry, 1911–1996], Cleveland, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?–1997); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1997–)

Divine couple seated in a lotus blossom

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early 1800s

Accession Number

1997.118

Medium

Gum tempera and gold on paper

Dimensions

Sheet: 13.3 x 9 cm (5 1/4 x 3 9/16 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Bequest of Mrs. A. Dean Perry