The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 23, 2024

Pair of Earrings with Four-Armed Vishnu Riding Garuda with Nagas (serpent divinities)

Pair of Earrings with Four-Armed Vishnu Riding Garuda with Nagas (serpent divinities)

1600s or 1700s
Location: 237 Himalayan

Did You Know?

Vishnu and Garuda are solar deities, and they sit on the crescent moon, so the light of both celestial bodies shines from these earrings.

Description

In Nepal, sculptures of deities were adorned with jewelry larger than pieces made for human beings. This pair of earrings features the Hindu god Vishnu seated cross-legged riding his mount the man-eagle Garuda. Garuda's arms are outstretched, grabbing the tails of serpents whose braided bodies snake up both sides of each earring. His wings drape like a cape behind him, and his talons clutch his crescent moon perch. Serpent hoods rise up behind Vishnu like a canopy.
  • Inaugural Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (co-organizer) (June 6-September 20, 1916).
  • {{cite web|title=Pair of Earrings with Four-Armed Vishnu Riding Garuda with Nagas (serpent divinities)|url=false|author=|year=1600s or 1700s|access-date=23 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1915.346