A LARGE SANDSTONE STELE OF SHIVA, CENTRAL INDIA, 10TH-11TH CENTURY Powerfully carved with Shiva standing in tribhanga within an arched niche supported by columns, the arch deeply carved with a foliate design, richly adorned with beaded jewelry and wearing an elaborate headdress. The serene face with almond-shaped eyes, elegantly curved brows, full lips, and mustache, flanked by long pendulous earlobes.

Provenance: French trade.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, losses, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations, few structural cracks, nicks, scratches.

Dimensions: Height 72 cm

Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related stele, 95.8 cm high, also dated 10^th-11^th century, at Christie’s New York in Indian and Southeast Asian Art on 18 September 2013, lot 214, sold for USD 20,000.