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Sacred Art & Iconography

Brahmarupa Mahakala (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007.1)

Buddhist Art

A brass figure titled "Brahmarupa Mahakala," Tibet, 17th century, roughly 6 5/8 inches in height. The figure shows Mahakala in the wrathful form in which he is said to have appeared to the god Brahma. Held today by the Metropolitan Museum of Art under accession 2007.1, Asian Art department.

Facts
Origins
Creation
1600 to 1699 1
Date of Creation
17th century 1
Region
Tibet 1
Subject Matter
Depicted Subject
Mahakala in his Brahmarupa form, a wrathful protector deity of Tibetan Buddhism 1
Medium (class)
Sculpture 1
Custody
Current Location
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1
Current Custodian
The Metropolitan Museum of Art 1
Custody History
Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 2007 1
Attributions
Tradition
Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism 1
Classification
Object Type
Sculpture or Statuary 1
Physical Form
Medium
Brass 1
Dimensions
H. 6 5/8 in. (16.8 cm); W. 4 3/4 in. (12.1 cm); D. 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm) 1
Rights and Reproduction
Reproduction and Copyright
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has designated this work as being in the public domain and makes it available through its Open Access policy; no permission is required for reproduction. 1
Connections

Associated With

Brahma, Deities

This source names Brahma directly: "A brass figure titled "Brahmarupa Mahakala," Tibet, 17th century, roughly 6 5/8 inches in height."

Source Brahmarupa Mahakala, accession 2007.1 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Belongs to Tradition

Buddhism, Religions
Source Brahmarupa Mahakala, accession 2007.1 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Tantra, Disciplines

Derived: this work depicts a figure already recorded as belonging to this tradition; the work-to-tradition link is inferred from that live depicts edge and the figures own attested tradition affiliation, not independently sourced beyond it.

Depicts

Mahakala, Deities

The Met's own title for this figure names the subject outright, "Brahmarupa Mahakala," a narrative identification of a specific wrathful form rather than a bare tag.

Source Brahmarupa Mahakala, accession 2007.1 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Originated In

Tibet, Regions
Source Brahmarupa Mahakala, accession 2007.1 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Sources
1. Brahmarupa Mahakala, accession 2007.1 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Metropolitan Museum of Art
  • accession 2007.1
  • catalogue record, medium/object-type description
    A brass figure titled "Brahmarupa Mahakala," Tibet, 17th century, roughly 6 5/8 inches in height.
  • Originated In: Tibet, Stored region property on this entity, cited to this source: Tibet
View the Source
Tibetan art (Wikipedia)
In Group: Tibetan Buddhist Metal Sculpture, own entity-description: "A brass figure titled Brahmarupa MahakalaView the Source
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