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Mother Goddess / Artist Unknown, India, North India
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1981/2.148
- Title
- Mother Goddess
- Artist Nationality
- Indian
- Medium and Support
- terracotta
- Object Creation Date
- 1st century BCE - 1st century CE
- Object Creation Place
- Asia (continent)
- India (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- Asia (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- India (nation)
- Style/Group/Movement
- terracotta
- Dimensions
- 15 cm x 7.2 cm x 5.5 cm (5 7/8 in. x 2 13/16 in. x 2 3/16 in.)
- Century
- 1st century BCE-1st century CE
- Primary Object Classification
- Sculpture
- Primary Object Type
- figure
- Physical Description
- This black terracotta is broken at the waste and depicts a simple body decorated with globs of clay decorated with punch-marked decorations. The face is modeled a bit more realistically with wide-open eyes and a full mouth. The front of her hair is in a series of rounded ball-like curls and a circular starburst decoration is at the top. The other oval globs frame the face of the goddess and cascade down what is left of her body.
- Subject Matter
- Worship of a mother goddess was widespread across northern India as far back as the third millennium BCE, during the age of the Indus Valley Civilization. Throughout the centuries, village women have created their own votive figures from clay, an inexpensive material that was always available. Small images were made entirely by hand or, as in this case, with the aid of a mold. Bits of clay were then appliquéd to the surface and decorated with punched patterns for a very pleasing effect. This mother goddess is the oldest object in the exhibition.
- Secondary Keywords
- descriptors
- figures
- object genres
- object genres by form
- people
- people (agents)
- people and culture
- people and occupations
- people by state or condition
- 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
- 653 x 1171
- File Size
- 77 KB
- Record
- 1981/2.148
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1981-sl-2.148/1981_2.148.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1981-SL-2.148:1981_2.148.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Mother Goddess; Artist Unknown, India, North India." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1981-sl-2.148/1981_2.148.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 04, 2024.
