Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India

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ART

Other Shiva idols include the Nataraja from Velankanni (Govt,

museum, Madras), Kalyanasundara from Tiruvelirkkudi (Art

Gallery, Tanjore), Vris-abhavhara from Tiruve-ngadu (Art

Gallery, Tanjore).

The 11th or 12th C South Indian bronze Parvati (Freer Gallery,

Washington) has a greatly elongated body and limbs. Bronze

images of Saivite saints include Sundaramurtiswami (James

Baldwin collection, Kansas City).

An unexpected discovery recently has brought to light eighty

bronze statues that lay hidden in a dark room in the Chidambaram

temple. Most of these are twelfth and thirteenth century Chola

bronzes, but some date from the

tenth century. The most beautiful

specimen is the 80 cm statue of

Uma (Parvati) dated 917 A.D.

Among the statues of royalty,

the finest figures are the life size

16th C statues of king Krish-

nadeva Raya and two of his chief

queens which still stand in a

temple at Turumalai. Their hands

pressed together in the gesture

called anjali, to mark their hom-

age and respect to the gods, their

eyes half closed they represent all

that is great in the Hindu ideals of

kingship.

TERRACOTTAS

Every archaeological site, from Harappa onwards, has pro-

duced terracotta objects. Most of them are religious. Crude clay

figures of goddesses, mostly Durga, are common. Animal figures

far outnumber human representations and show greater realism as

well. The torso of a woman from Lothal, similar to the Harappan

torso of a dancing figure in bronze, shows better modelling. At

Lothal the figures of women do not show elaborate jewellery.

Animal figures include cattle, sheep,

dogs, pigs, monkeys, elephants, rhinoceros

and birds. A terracotta horse at Mohenjo-

Daro and two more at Rangpur and Lothal

have been found. No cows are shown ei-

ther at Mohenjoaaro or Harappa. The most

common animal representation is the bull.

The

terracotta

figurines

the

Mauryan period are rather crude and re-

semble the protohistoric examples. Those

of the Sunga period display an increased

technical skill. In their diversity and spon-

taneity these give a more intimate insight into Indian life than stone

sculptures. Other objects have minor religious significance : figures

of mother and child suggest offerings made by childless women

while the numerous figures of a man and a woman standing in mod-

est poses may have been charms for a happy marriage. While many

terracottas are crude others are of fine workmanship and real

beauty.

The terracotta toys are noted for their ingenuity. Examples of

them are a bull with a mobile head or a monkey going up and down a

string.

Most of the terracottas so far discovered date from the Mauryan

to the Gupta period.

WOOD CARVINGS

Wood carving has been practised in Kerala from a remote period.

A number of temples in various parts of the state are rich in

examples of the craft. The state's forests are an abundant source of

timber. The temples of Trichambaram, Taliparamba, Tiruvangad,

Tali (Calicut), Tiruvannur, Triprayar, Tiruvilvamala in N. Kerala and

Pazhoor,

T i r u m a r a d i

T u r a v o o r ,

K i d a n g o o r ,

E t t u m a n u r ,

V a z h a p p a l l y ,

K a v i y o o r ,

Chattankulangara,

Kuratti and

Kadinamkulam contain some of the best examples of workmanship

in wood, illustrating various Puranic scenes and figures from the

Bhagavata, Ramayana, Mahabharata

and

Halasya Mahatmya.

Splendid relics of wood carving which can be ascribed to the

14th C are still in existence on the ceiling of the Namaskara Man-

dapa of the Tiruvampadi shrine in the Sripadmana-bhaswamy

temple, Trivandrum. They belong to the reign of the Travancore king

Varma Sarvanganatha who was a great patron of art and letters.

They depict scenes from Hindu mythology.

The temple dedicated to Narasimha at Chattankulangara near

Chengannur, has extensive wood sculpture dating to 14th C A.D.

Wood carving of the 15th C can be found in the Shiva temple at

Kazhakkoottam, ten miles north of Trivandrum. The nearby

Bhagavathi temple at Tonnal has friezes illustrative of the wood

carving of the 15th C. The ceiling in this temple contains the figures

of Dikpalas. The vehicles of the Gods are shown separately on the

sides.

The Shiva temple at Ettumanur contains notable examples of

wood sculpture. The whole of the

Ramayana

story is carved with

striking beauty round the central shrine.

A piece of wonderfully carved wood work on a detached panel of

a temple doorway preserved in the old rock cut cave temple at

Irunilakkode near Muloorkkara railway station is an excellent ex-

ample of the 16th century sculpture on wood. This is in two

sections. The upper scene represents the ecstatic dance of Krishna

and the Gopis, while the lower one is of Lakshmi with two ele-

phants standing on either side and offering Poornakumbha.

Specimens of wood-work which show a vividness of expres-

sion and an innovation of style are in the Shiva temple at

Vazhapalli.

Some of the most important scenes carved round the central

shrine of the Shiva temple at Chonakkara are Arj una's fight with

Shiva in the guise of a hunter and the penance of Arjuna. In the

temple at Vettikulangara the whole of the

Bhagavata

is illustrated

with remarkable vigour.

The ancient temples in the north of Kerala such as Trichamba-

ram, Taliparamba, Triprayar, Tiruvallamala, Tali, Tiruvannur and

Tiruvangad contain well-sculptured figures in wood.

In the shrine dedicated to Lakshmana, adjacent to the Sri Rama

Krishnadevaraya and his queens,

Vijayanagar 16th C, Venkateshwara

Temple, Tirupati

Ramayana pierced wood frieze, Ramaswami Koil,

Padmanabhapuram, A.D., 1744