A brass sculpture from twelfth century Pala-Sena Bangladesh, held by the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, accession S1992.46, gift of Dr. David R. Nalin. It shows the multi-armed goddess Durga in her Mahishasuramardini form, mounted in combat against the shape-shifting buffalo demon Mahishasura, whose boon of invulnerability to gods and men left him defeatable only by a goddess. The composition follows the standard iconography of the type first attested in inscriptions and sculpture from the sixth century CE, the goddess's face calm and serene even as she wields multiple weapons in the act of slaying him.
Facts
Custody
Current LocationSmithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, Washington, D.C., accession S1992.46 1 Current CustodianSmithsonian National Museum of Asian Art 1 Subject Matter
Depicted SubjectDurga in her Mahishasuramardini form, slaying the buffalo demon Mahishasura. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Bangladesh directly: "from twelfth century Pala-Sena Bangladesh, held by the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, accession S1992.46, gift of Dr."
Depicts
The Smithsonian's own record for this work already names Mahishasura directly, describing the goddess Durga in combat against the shape-shifting buffalo demon.
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