Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India encyclopedia

ART

Most of the terracottas so far discovered date from the Mauryan to the Gupta period.

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

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 at Pazhoor, T i r u m a r a d i ,

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.

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

Ramayana pierced wood frieze, Ramaswami Koil,

Padmanabhapuram, A.D., 1744

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

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 of 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.