A LOT WITH TWO COPPER VOTIVE PLAQUES DEPICTING VIRABHADRA, 18TH-19TH CENTURY

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A LOT WITH TWO COPPER VOTIVE PLAQUES DEPICTING VIRABHADRA, 18TH-19TH CENTURY India. Both depict Virabhadra, the four-armed deity, standing on a base within an arched niche centered by a kirtimukha mask, richly adorned with jewelry and holding a sword, shield, bow, and arrow in his four hands. Dimensions: 18.6-19.3 cm (shield excl. stand), 22-26.5 cm (shield incl. stand) Each with a modern stand. (4) Virabhadra, an incarnation of Shiva, created after Shiva’s wife Sati, was not invited to a great sacrifice given by her father Daksha. Being greatly humiliated, Sati went to the banquet and threw herself on the sacrificial fire. When Shiva heard of his wife’s death, he tore a hair from his head and threw it to the ground. Virabhadra, a great hero-warrior, arose from this hair. He cut off Daksha’s head in his rage and hurled it into the sacrificial fire. After the other gods calmed Shiva down, Daksha’s head was replaced by that of a ram and he later became a devotee of Shiva. Museum comparison: Compare a closely related copper-brass ceremonial shield of Virabhadra, dated to the 18th century, on display in The British Museum, museum number 1853,0108.9.

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