A chromolithograph diptych published by the Calcutta Art Studio around 1885 to 1895, part of a set of five sheets depicting the Ten Mahavidyas, two goddesses to a sheet, labelled in Bengali and English. The left field shows Dhumavati as an aged widow, in ragged clothing with unbound, dishevelled hair, holding a winnowing fan and riding in a carriage with a crow perched nearby, her form associated with inauspicious and marginal things and, paradoxically, with rescue from trouble and the defeat of enemies. The right field shows Matangi, a beautiful dark-complexioned woman with long wavy hair seated before a curtained balcony, holding a goad, sword, club and noose, with a tambura resting near her, an attribute alluding to her role as a tantric form of Sarasvati, goddess of music, speech and learning. Impressions of this print survive in more than one museum collection, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Facts
Custody
Current LocationThe Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (this atlas's primary record); a second impression is held by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 2 Current CustodianThe Metropolitan Museum of Art 2 Physical Form
Dimensions30.5 by 40.3 cm (impression at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) 1 Rights and Reproduction
Reproduction and CopyrightThis atlas describes and cites the print rather than reproducing an image of it. 2 Subject Matter
Depicted SubjectDhumavati (left field) and Matangi (right field), two of the Ten Mahavidyas. 2 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Bengali directly: "two goddesses to a sheet, labelled in Bengali and English."
Boston, Cities This source names Boston directly: "of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston."
Depicts
Sources
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