id:			142284
accession number:	1966.119
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1966.119
updated:		2020-11-04 21:05:06.932000

River Goddess Ganga, c. 600. Northern India, Mathura, Vardhama Period, 6th-7th Century. Sandstone; overall: 108 cm (42 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1966.119

title:				River Goddess Ganga
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 600
creation date earliest:		590
creation date latest:		610
current location:		244 Indian and Southeast Asian
creditline:			John L. Severance Fund
copyright:			

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culture:	Northern India, Mathura, Vardhama Period, 6th-7th Century
technique:	sandstone
department:	Indian and Southeast Asian Art
collection:	Indian Art
type:		Sculpture
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 108 cm (42 1/2 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Traditions and Revisions: Themes from the History of Sculpture
	opening date:   1975-09-24T04:00:00
	<i>Traditions and Revisions: Themes from the History of Sculpture</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (September 24-November 16, 1975).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

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fun fact: 


digital description: 


wall description: 
The Ganges River that runs from the Himalaya Mountains east to the Bay of Bengal is India's most sacred river. Hindu myths tell of how the god Shiva held out a lock of his hair to catch the fall of the heavenly river, identified with the Milky Way, so that it would trickle gently to earth. The river is personified as the goddess Ganga, and since she flows eternally through the hair of Shiva, the river is considered holy. Sculptures of Ganga were placed at the doorway of temples, for the image of the purifying waters symbolically cleanses those who enter the sacred space. She stands on a crocodile-like creature called <em>makara</em>, here shown with a fancifully foliated tail.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 231
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1966/page/n255

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 231
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1969/page/n255

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 292
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1978/page/n312

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.119/1966.119_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.119/1966.119_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.119/1966.119_full.tif