Harvard Art Museums > 2006.240: Vignettes of Devotees Worshipping Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva Paintings Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Vignettes of Devotees Worshipping Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva , 2006.240,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Apr 20, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/317996. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 2006.240 Title Vignettes of Devotees Worshipping Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva Classification Paintings Work Type painting Date early 20th century Places Creation Place: South Asia, India, Rajasthan Culture Indian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/317996 Physical Descriptions Medium Ink and opaque watercolor on paper; Rajput Style Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Katherine Burton Jones Accession Year 2006 Object Number 2006.240 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description The page features three vignettes of worshippers venerating a member of the Hindu Trinity (Trimurti): Brahma, the god of creation; Vishnu, the god of preservation; and Shiva, the god of destruction. On the left, the blue-skinned Vishnu is depicted seated cross-legged on a lotus on top of his bird mount, Garuda. The god is shown with multiple heads and arms, which carry identifying attributes, like the conch shell. A large crown rests across all of his heads and a halo is behind them. Vishnu faces an elderly worshipper with a full, white beard, who sits cross-legged on a pink mat. He wears a red cap and a yellow dhoti, a garment worn by male Hindus that consists of a piece of fabric tied around the waist and extending to cover most of the legs. His hands are raised in veneration, palms facing upward. On the right, the red-skinned Brahmaa is seated cross-legged on a lotus on top of his mount, a hamsa, a swan or goose of Hindu mythology. He is depicted with multiple heads and arms, a large crown, and a halo. He carries a long trident. Brahma faces a worshipper nearly identical to Vishnu’s, except that he tends a small fire. At the bottom of the page is Shiva seated on his bull mount, Nandi. Shiva also is rendered with multiple heads and arms which carry different his identifying attributes, like the trident. He has a large halo with small rays emanating from it behind him. Shiva’s worshipper is an elderly, white-bearded figure wearing a turban and a yellow dhoti. He stands before Shiva, hands clasped in prayer. An tray of food as an offering is on the ground between the two figures. Rajput Style. Publication History Stages of Depiction: Indian Drawings: 17th-19th Centuries, auct. cat., Hurst Gallery (Cambridge, 2006), pp 41, cat. 15 Verification Level This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
