Bhairava (?), head / Artist Unknown, India, South India
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1977/2.103
- Title
- Bhairava (?), head
- Artist Nationality
- Indian
- Medium and Support
- brass or copper alloy
- Object Creation Date
- 18th century
- Object Creation Place
- Asia (continent)
- India (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- Asia (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- India (nation)
- Style/Group/Movement
- folk bronze
- Dimensions
- 24.2 cm x 23 cm x 15.5 cm (9 1/2 in. x 9 1/16 in. x 6 1/8 in.)
- Century
- 18th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Ritual Objects
- Primary Object Type
- figure
- Secondary Object Classification
- Metalwork
- Physical Description
- Almost life size, this stylized face was probably placed upon a shaft and used as a religious standard at a temple. The face consists of almost a perfect circle with large ears to either side. His mouth is open showing tiny saw tooth like teeth with large canines at either end. His eyes are large and wide open with huge circular pupils and a heavy eyebrows and luxurious moustache. Horizontal lines on his forehead are signs of a follower of Shiva.
- Subject Matter
- Labeled as Bhairava, this folk bronze can either be considered a face of the god or of one of his ghoulish followers. Without other attributes, such as weapons in his hands, it is impossible to tell exactly what this face represents, but the Shaiva affiliation is obvious from the ghoulish nature of the face and the presence of the lines across his forehead that designate the figure as related to Shiva. Shiva as Bhairava is associated with the cremation grounds and lots of impure things, placing him outside society and in a position to dissociate himself for things of the world and consequently approach religious release from the world, a goal in Indian religious philosophies. This relates to Tantric practices in other Indian derived religions.
- Secondary Keywords
- biological components
- components
- components and systems
- components by specific context
- religion
- religions
- the human body
- upper body
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 1259 x 947
- File Size
- 58 KB
- Record
- 1977/2.103
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1977-sl-2.103/1977_2.103.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1977-SL-2.103:1977_2.103.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Bhairava (?), head; Artist Unknown, India, South India." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1977-sl-2.103/1977_2.103.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 19, 2024.
