A COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF A DEITY 


NORTHEASTERN INDIA, BENGAL, 18TH/19TH CENTURY16 3/4 in. (42.5cm) high
|The position of the arms and the hieratic posture suggests this figure represents a form of Krishna emphasizing his status as an avatar of Vishnu. A six-armed cosmic representation of Krishna in the Parson Collection, attributed to Odisha or Bengal, has the same facial type and rounded limbs (Pal, Puja and Peity, Santa Barbara, 2016, p.38, fig.24). Also compare a four armed seated figure of Ganga in the Bhansali Collection and a crawling Krishna in the Walters Art Museum (Pal, The Elegant Image, New Orleans, 2011, p.79, no.40, and Pal, Desire and Devotion, Baltimore, 2001, p.85, no.27, respectively). A related Fluting Krishna was sold at Bonhams, New York, 17 September 2014, lot 100. Provenance Private Collection, Berlin, acquired in India, 1960s Lempertz, 9 December 2016, lot 610