Images(3)

The god Vishnu

Date8th century

Label TextIn southern India, temples developed niches that tend to fill the full height of the wall, unlike the shorter niches on structures further north. This imposing image of Vishnu seems like it should have been the focus of worship in a temple’s sanctum, but more likely the sculpture inhabited an important but subsidiary location—a niche at the center of an exterior wall. The shallow carving and minimal detail are typical of sculpture from southeastern India where granite was the primary stone available.

Object number69.13

Provenance[William H. Wolff, Inc., New York]; purchased from gallery by Seattle Art Museum (Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection), 1969

Photo CreditPhoto: Paul Macapia

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Boundless: Stories of Asian Art, Feb. 8, 2020 - ongoing. Published References"Selected Works." Seattle, WA: Seattle Art Museum, 1991, p. 144 Cummins, Joan, editor. Vishnu Hinduism's Blue-Skinned Savior. Frist Cente for the Visual Arts, 2011, p. 64

Credit LineEugene Fuller Memorial Collection

Dimensions62 1/4 x 23 1/2 x 9 7/8 in. (158.1 x 59.7 x 25.1 cm) Overall height: 68 in. (172.7 cm)

MediumGranite