A DEVOTIONAL PANEL OF THE TEN HINDU TANTRIC GODDESSES (MAHAVIDYA)
Possibly Kolkata (Calcutta), West Bengal, Eastern India, second half 19th century

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on wove paper, the vertical-format composition depicting the ten Hindu tantric goddesses known as Mahavidyas, each one portrayed with her classical attributes, stance, and identifying features to make the figure easily identifiable by the devotee, each devi set underneath a polylobed cusped white marble arch reminiscent of Northern Indian architectures, the top row with Kali in the centre, flanked by the male multi-headed Hindu gods Brahma (the Creator) and Lord Murugan (heroic warrior later worshipped as a form of Skanda, the god of War), mounted, glazed, and framed, 43cm x 34cm including the frame.

Dimensions: 43cm x 34cm including the frame