A red sandstone stela fragment of Ganesha. Northern Central India. 10/11th century

A red sandstone stela fragment of Ganesha. Northern Central India. 10/11th century

The two-armed Ganesha sits on a throne in lalitasana, placing his arms around the shoulders of his two consorts Riddhi and Siddhi, who are seated on his thighs. To his right stand a female and a male figure, possibly his parents Parvati and Shiva, and to his left a mounting lion. In front of the throne sits Ganesha's mount, the rat.
Height 34 cm; width 37 cm

The red sandstone used to carve this stela is characteristic of medieval Hindu sculpture from north-central India. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, houses a striking and well-preserved red sandstone sculpture of Ganesha with his consorts (acc. no. 1989.312), reportedly from Rajasthan and dated to the 11th century (see: Vishaka Desai and Darielle Mason, Gods, Guardians and Lovers: Temple Sculptures from North India A.D. 700–1200, New York: Asia Society Galleries, 1993, pp. 169–170, fig. 18).

Provenance

Yvonne et Jean-Claude Moreau-Gobard, Galerie Arts d'Asie Galerie Orient-Occident, Paris, 1970s
Collection Robert P. (1935—2022) and Alice Y. Piccus, San Francisco