BHUDEVI
India
c. 17th century
Bronze
Height 44 cm
A bronze image of the Goddess Bhudevi or Bhumi-Devi. She is one of the consorts of Vishnu, and represents Mother Earth. Standing on a two-tiered plinth, she holds a lotus (padma) in her left hand, and wears her characteristic horizontal breast band (khucha-bhanda). She wears her hair done up in a mukutu and through a disc at the back. She has sashes hanging from either hip and to either side, and is decked out in ornaments. Her right hand hangs to her side, a bright expression lights her face, one is hip thrust to the side in a tribhanga pose. South Indian, probably Tamil Nadu.
Note: Sridevi and Bhudevi are both representations of Lakshmi. Sridevi is depicted with the left hand in the kataka hasta pose (the fingers are partially closed, holding a lotus) and the right hand hangs loosely on the side and the fingers are held in the gajakarna pose. The Bhudevi idol is very similar to the idol of Sridevi, the only difference being the swap in the hand poses. The idol of Bhudevi has her right hand in kataka hasta pose and the left in gajakarna pose. She is often depicted wearing a breast band, while Sridevi is not.
Provenance: Paul Brand Auctions, Amsterdam
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