- 284
VISHNU RECLINING ON SHESHA IN THE COSMIC OCEAN: A FOLIO FROM A MARKANDEYA PURANA SERIES
Estimate
1,000 - 2,000 USD
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Description
- VISHNU RECLINING ON SHESHA IN THE COSMIC OCEAN: A FOLIO FROM A MARKANDEYA PURANA SERIES
- Opaque watercolor with ink on paper
- image: 5 1/4 by 4 1/4 in. (12.7 by 10.2 cm)
Provenance
Oscar Leneman Collection
Acquired 1978
Acquired 1978
Condition
Surface abrasions and some stains with edge losses on four sides. Verso: Some stains. Text inscribed in black ink. Old repairs and reinforced areas. Conservation framed.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
Vishnu reclines on the multi-headed serpent Shesha in the Cosmic Ocean as the Goddess Lakshmi caresses his foot. The God Brahma emerges on a lotus from Vishnu's navel. The asuras (demons) Madhu and Kaitabha emerge to threaten Brahma. Brahma implores that Vishnu rise from his meditative yogic sleep for protection as Vishnu awakens to battle.
A lively folio from an early dispersed Devi Mahatmya Series ("The Hymn of the Great Goddess" as narrated by the Sage Markandeya) and executed in an early "popular" manner on a coarse natural-leaf paper, which is not dissimilar from the porous paper of the famous "Palam" Bhagavata Purana of 1530-40. Its palette, naive fish-shaped black outlined eye, flattened heads and angular clothing details, all suggest a connection to the earlier pre-Mughal Chaurapanchasika-related manner. The present series has previously been dated, although somewhat broadly by scholars, to the first half of the Seventeenth Century.
For another folio from this significant dispersed series see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, accession no. 1977.440.16.