Worship of Shiva and Devi
Unknown Artist
early 1700s
Medium
Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions
31.2 × 24.5 cm · image: 26.7 × 20.3 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Sherman E. Lee
Accession Number
1967.240
About this artwork
In the shrine in the lower half of the painting, the Hindu god Shiva appears in human form along with his wife, depicted as a red goddess. Shiva has the appearance of a yogi, his matted locs coiled on top of his head, a chain of skulls around his neck. He wears cobras as jewelry, and his body is white with ashes of the cremated dead. The crescent moon perches at his third eye of knowledge. Six women bear offerings in vessels of brass—a pure material suitable for sacred food and drink. The narrat...