Ancient Sculptures and Deities

Artifacts showcasing ancient sculptures of deities from various cultures, made of stone and wood, displaying intricate details and historical significance.

Carved figure at Copan Ruins, Maya Site of Copan, UNESCO World Heritage site, Honduras

Stone Vishnu from Dong Si Mahapot. Nat. Museum of Prachinburi,Thailand.

The Divine Hero Rama

Buddha Shakyamuni. Sri Lanka, Kandy, 17th-18th century. Sculpture. Wood with paint

Priest-King or Deity, c. 1600 BC. Hittite, North Syria, early 17th Century BC. Basalt with bone eyes (left, ancient; right, restored); overall: 87.6 cm (34 1/2 in.).

Standing Buddha 11th century Thailand, Haripunjaya style. Standing Buddha 39158

Carved figure at Copan Ruins, Maya Site of Copan, UNESCO World Heritage site, Honduras

Ancestor Figure(Korwar)

Standing Buddha. Thailand. Date: 701 AD-800 AD. Dimensions: 67.3 × 23.7 × 11.0 cm (26 1/2 × 9 5/16 × 4 5/16 in.). Sandstone. Origin: Thailand. Museum: The Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, USA.

Toni Malau (St. Anthony), late 18th-early 19th century, 10 5/16 x 3 5/16 x 2 13/16 in. (26.19 x 8.41 x 7.14 cm), Ivory, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 18th - 19th century, This centuries-old African representation of Saint Anthony of Padua is a good example of syncretism. Syncretism is the combination of different, seemingly contradictory belief systems. Known as Toni Malau among the Kongo people, 'Anthony of Prosperity' is shown here wearing a European monks clothing, belt, and sandals. Yet over his shoulders he wears a netted cape, a raffia garment reserved for Kongo nobility, and parts of the Childs arms and Toni Malaus left hand have gradually been scraped off as believers took bits of ivory for healing or protection. Drawing its form and power from both traditions, Toni Malau embodies the rich exchange between Kongo and Christian religious thought and imagery, which developed before forced conversion under colonialism.

Votive Tablet with Buddha Shakyamuni. Thailand, circa 8th century. Sculpture. Terracotta

Hand-Held Clapper with Oba 18th-19th century Edo peoples Hand-held clappers commemorate an important event in Benin history, the victory of Oba Esigie over the Igala kingdom in the early sixteenth century. On the way to battle, Esigie and his army met the "bird of prophecy," which predicted disaster for Benin. Rather than submit to this fate, Esigie ordered the bird killed and went on to defeat his enemy. Ivory clappers depict the king and the queen mother; the latter is said to have used her vast spiritual powers to help her son prevail. Such instruments are played by chiefs at an annual palace festival celebrating Esigie's triumph.. Hand-Held Clapper with Oba. Edo peoples. 18th-19th century. Ivory. Nigeria, Court of Benin. Bone/Ivory-Musical Instruments

Bodhisattva Maitreya 601 CE-800 CE Thailand. Bronze .

Buddha head. Rock. China, Northern Wei Dynasty. Paris, Cernuschi museum. 55161-7 Chinese art, Buddhism, spiritual leader, China, Wei Dynasty of the North, Peter, Sage, Statue, Tete

Seated Male Deity () 15th-early 16th century Aztec. Seated Male Deity () 307631

Figure: Court Attendant with Ceremonial Sword Edo peoples 18th-19th century At its origins, the centralized city-state of Benin was founded by Edo-speaking peoples. The accounts by official court historians and descriptions provided by visitors evoke a vibrant cultural center continually redefined by its leadership through shifting internal and external power dynamics. According to oral tradition, circa 1300, Edo chiefs are reputed to have reached out to the leader of neighboring Ife, Oranmiyan, to establish a new divinely sanctioned royal dynasty. Since then, the investiture of Benins rulers to the title of obas has conferred upon them at once a role of chief priest officiating in important religious ceremonies and presiding over an elaborate structure of palace officials. During the fifteenth century reign of Oba Ewuare, Benins armies were formed and the fortification of its capital with a massive wall undertaken. In parallel, delegations of Portuguese traders assiduously sought to

. Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future, will appear during the following world cycle and rule an earthly paradise as successor to the Buddha. At present he is still in his heaven, awaiting his descent to earth. This figure comes from Longmen, a complex of Buddhist temples carved from the living rock. The fine stylization of the drapery and the facial features are typical of sculpturefrom this site.

Standing Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion. Culture: probably Thailand or Cambodia. Dimensions: H. 7 3/4 in. (19.7 cm); W. 2 in. (5.1 cm); D. 1 in. (2.5 cm). Date: 8th-9th century.This rare gold repoussé representation of Avalokiteshvara was fabricated from many pieces of fitted, worked gold. Both the high hairstyle (jatamukuta) and the deerskin over the figure's left shoulder are consistent with representations of Avalokiteshvara, a bodhisattva who offered compassion and protection to devotees. The thin, elongated body and the understated clothing are consistent with Si Thep production. Museum: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA.

Hiranyakashipu, The Demon-King ca. 1700-1750 Southern India, Tamil Nadu, probably Thanjavur district This version of the crowned demon-king, fanged to denote his demonic nature, is missing its decorative appendages. In some renditions of temple dramas, the characters, with the notable exception of Narasimha, are represented twice on stage. On this work, the fine detailing of the conical crown and jeweled diadem are clearly legible.. Hiranyakashipu, The Demon-King. Southern India, Tamil Nadu, probably Thanjavur district. ca. 1700-1750. Wood with cloth and polychrome. Sculpture

Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, 600s. Northern Thailand, Buriram Province. Bronze and silver alloy; overall: 21.6 cm (8 1/2 in.).

Mayan ceramic figurine of a Lord, 600-900 AD Mexican

Male Figure 1701-1800 Mali. Made for a large altar honoring ancestors, this figureís crusty surface resulted from repeated ritual applications of sacrificial materials including animal blood, millet porridge, plant juice, and oil, infusing it with a vital energy. Its braided hairstyle, thin beard, amulet-pendant, and ritual staff (on his left shoulder) suggest that this figure portrays a high-ranking man. The extremely dry environment of the cave where it was stored helped to preserve it.. Wood and sacrificial material . Dogon

Standing Four-Armed Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion 8th-early 9th century Thailand or Cambodia. Standing Four-Armed Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion 42641

Cup of a Buddha. Cup of a Buddha with a stylized face and a finely decorated crown. On base.

Głowa Guanyin - fragment rzeźby. unknown, craftsman

Stone Huaxtec female deity

Male figure (tiki) representing the deity Rongo Mangarevan people Early 19th century This Mangarevan male tiki is associated with the deity Rongo (Hawaii: Lono). Piercing through the sky on the arc of a rainbow, Rongo is responsible for the rains that sustain the vital breadfruit crop. Carved in the fullness of youth, this wooden figure references the agricultural abundance that was sought through the ritual presentation of the first fruits of the season to the gods. These ceremonies accompanied the appearance on the horizon of the cluster of stars known as Matariki (Pleiades).

God Vishnu's Mount, Garuda, Standing with Hands in Gesture of Adoration (Anjalimudra) 1201-1300 Nepal. Gilt bronze with gemstones .

Standing Bodhisattva Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future 9th-10th century() Thailand (Prakhon Chai). Standing Bodhisattva Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future. Thailand (Prakhon Chai). 9th-10th century(). Bronze. pre-Angkor period. Sculpture

Seated Female Deity 15th-early 16th century Aztec. Seated Female Deity 313579

Ancestor or Guardian Figure(Hampatong)

God Baal or Reshef.

The Bodhisattva Amoghapasha Lokeshvara. Nepal, circa 15th century or earlier. Sculpture. Wood with traces of paint

'Crowned Buddha Pacifying the Ocean ( )'. Siam (now Thailand). Bangkok art, Second quarter of the 19th century. Dimensions: h. 37 cm. Museum: State Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

Seated Figure, 19th century, 23 in. (58.4 cm), Wood, Côte d'Ivoire, 19th century, In traditional Senufo culture the principal women's social and religious secret association is Tyekpa, which primarily acts as a funerary society for honoring the dead. This sculpture of an idealized Senufo woman is known as pombibele and is carried on the head of a senior female initiate during funeral dances held for a recently deceased member of the Tyekpa society.

Seated Male Figure with Lance 16th-19th century Bamana peoples Bamana figures such as this were the focal point of celebrations of the "Jo" and "Gwan" initiation societies (associations of men and women) in several villages in southern Mali. This work depicts an idealized male leader that would have been the companion to a similarly attired mother and child representation. For annual rituals, a community's collection of a series of such works were removed from shrines, cleaned and oiled, decorated with cloth and beads, and displayed in the village square as a group. The mother and child and her male counterpart were placed in central positions of honor, distinguished by attributes of their extraordinary physical and supernatural powers.This figure is depicted wearing a hunter's hat adorned with animal horns and amulets. The amulets serve to heighten his powers of perception and in doing so augment his abilities to find game. He holds a lance considered a "weapon of distinction." Such a

The jackal-headed god Anubis, guardian of tombs.

Crowned Bodhisattva 3rd-early 4th century North India (Uttar Pradesh, Mathura) This youthful Buddhist savior, with curled lockets of hairs cascading to his shoulders, is amongst the most appealing images of this figure type from early India. He is broad shouldered with a slender waist, the archetypal Kushan physiognomy of the universal monarch (chakravartin) Buddha-type. This concept is carried through to the exceptional treatment of the head decoration, with its distinguished crown and the presiding parent Buddha. In keeping with works of the Kushan school at Mathura, the facial details are sharply carved, conveying a plasticity and a conventionalized naturalism to the face. The forehead mark (urna), textually described as a tuft of hair but typically represented as a raised dot, is an auspicious sign of nobility and accepted as one of the Buddhas lakshanas, denoting Buddhahood.The bodhisattvas chest is adorned with an elaborate array of jewelry. Close to the neck is a string of lar

Harpokrates in double crown 664-30 B.C. Late Period-Ptolemaic Period The figure represents a child god in a striding/standing position, wearing the double crown, which alludes to his royal status. The child god is distinguished from adult gods by a range of iconographic clues: his nudity, the finger raised to the mouth (a child-like gesture), and the sidelock on the right side of his head. The faint incised outline of a string is visible at his neck, intended for the suspension of an amulet, an attribute common to child gods but not adult gods.Child gods grew in popularity and cult from the Third Intermediate Period onwards, rivaling even the most powerful and ancient gods, especially as temple offerings. Without an inscription, it can be very difficult to securely distinguish and identify particular child gods, but here the double crown identifies the god as Harpokrates (Horus the Child), who was the son of Osiris and Isis. This royal crown symbolizes the union of Lower and Upper Egyp

In Egyptian mythology, Hathor was the great sky goddess. Often represented as a cow, she was revered as universal mother goddess

Linga with Face of Shiva (Ekamukhalinga) 7th century India (Jammu and Kashmir, ancient kingdom of Kashmir) Shiva manifest in human form emerging from the linga shaft is a celebrated representation of the god that rose to prominence in North India during the fifth century. In this masterful rendering, the handsome face gives a sweet countenance to this complex deity; he displays the third eye of supreme wisdom, wears large ear plugs, and has his wavy hair drawn up into a double-looped chignon decorated by a crescent moon, his signature motif. Incised lines define the phallic glands.. Linga with Face of Shiva (Ekamukhalinga). India (Jammu and Kashmir, ancient kingdom of Kashmir). 7th century. Stone. Sculpture

Kneeling Female Deity. Mexico, Aztec 15th-early 16th century. Besalt.

Kwakiutl tribe Native American grave marker. Artist: Unknown

Hindu Celestial being (vidyadhara) 11th century sandstone sculpture from Madhya Pradesh, India

In Egyptian mythology, Hathor was the great sky goddess. Often represented as a cow, she was revered as the universal mother goddess and sometimes as the creator of the universe. She was one of the few deities that the Egyptians depicted with a full face. Here, she is depicted with a broad human head, cow's ears, and wears a solar disk between horns.

Head of a Buddha mid-6th century China The subtle fleshiness of the cheeks, thin nose ridge, and elegant curve of the eyebrows and eyelids are characteristic of sculpture produced in Shandong province, in northeast China, during the second half of the sixth century. Identification of this school of Chinese Buddhist sculpture is based on recent, spectacular archaeological discoveries at sites such as Qingzhou.. Head of a Buddha. China. mid-6th century. Limestone with traces of pigment and gilding. Northern Qi dynasty (550-577). Sculpture

Bodhisattva (Maitreya) with crossed ankles ca. 480-90 China. Bodhisattva (Maitreya) with crossed ankles 42712

Ma'at brings order to the cosmos. On the day of judgement the heart of the deceased is weighed against her feather. Ra is the Sun God and Seth is the god of chaos.

Maya-Röhrchen mit sitzendem König A Maya ceramic censer depicting a seated king holding a censer, dating back to 300-400 CE. Copyright: xZoonar.com/GallóxGusztávx 22550049

Apsara on the wall of Angkor wat, Cambodia

Dvarapala (Guardian Figure), 8th century, 26 3/4 x 12 x 8 1/2 in. (67.95 x 30.48 x 21.59 cm), Stone, China, 8th century, Guardian figures called Dvarapala were located at entrances to Buddhist cave sanctuaries and temple compounds where they acted to thwart any forces opposing Buddhist thought. As such, they were dramatically depicted in vigorous poses with threatening facial expressions and exaggerated muscular structure ready to confront all threats. Typically made in pairs, one Dvarapala will be represented as uttering the cosmic sound 'a' (open mouthed) and the other, as the case is here, the sound 'un' with a closed mouth. These sounds are the first and last letters of the Sanskrit alphabet symbolizing the beginning and end of all things, reminding us of the brevity of life.

woman beckon fetish isolated, in thai culture thay belief that it is a lucky for trade

Standing Avalokiteshvara 10th-11th century() Indonesia (Sumatra). Standing Avalokiteshvara 39239

The deity of the SHOUXING infections; 19th century (1801-00-00-1900-00-00);Eight immortal, shouxing, peaches, figurines, deer, messages, Chinese art, cranes

Ibeji-Figur für Zwillingsanbetung Ibeji figure for twin worship, Ioruba, Ogbomosho, Nigeria, 20th century, carved wood and glass paste, MEB, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain LicenseRF Copyright: xZoonar.com/Tolox 23171274

Water Spirit 19th Century. Malaysia

The Hawaiian war-god Kukailimoku from Polynesia, 19th century. Artist: Unknown

Hindu god Vishnu. Yang style Mum (14th-15th century) sandstone sculpture from Kon Tum, Vietnam

Head of a Male Deity ca. 9th century Thailand (probably Nakhon Pathom Province). Head of a Male Deity 38170

Standing Avalokiteshvara (the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion) 8th century Thailand. Standing Avalokiteshvara (the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion) 38953

Bodhisattva. Image of a Bodhisattva, standing in Tribhanga attitude.

Hawaii, Maui, Lahaina, Buddha Lahaina Jodo Mission front view w/ flowers

Head of a Male Deity ca. 13th century Indonesia (Kalimantan). Head of a Male Deity 38263

Child god in nemes and hemhem crown 664-30 B.C. Late Period-Ptolemaic Period The figure represents a child god in a seated/reclining position, wearing the hemhem crown with the nemes. The hemhem crown was cast separately from the child god, and was inserted and secured at the top of the head. The child god is usually distinguished from adult gods by a range of iconographic clues: his nudity, the finger raised to the mouth (a child-like gesture), and the thick sidelock attached on the right side of his nemes. Here the figures hands are both held at the sides, but his nudity and sidelock suffice to identify him as a child god. Child gods are commonly linked with royalty and this gods hemhem is an elaborate royal crown with solar associations, here emphasized not just by the sun disks at the top of the crown, but also by incised sun disks at the base of each hem element. Meanwhile, the child gods plump, well-fed belly showcases his ability to bring about prosperity and abundance.Child

Maldives: Head of a Buddha image discovered on Thoddoo Island, Northern Ari Atoll, by Muhammad Ismail Didi, c. 1955, and subsequently destroyed by Muslim iconoclasts at Male Museum, February 2012. c. 9th century CE

Vishnu Paricharak Purusha 11th century Kalchuri period Vaishnav cult, found at district Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Copyright: xHarixMahidhar/DinodiaxPhotox

18th dynasty wooden funerary statue of Isis, a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom (c. 2686-2181 BCE) as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her slain husband, the divine king Osiris, and produces and protects his heir, Horus. She was believed to help the dead enter the afterlife as she had helped Osiris

Hindu god Vishnu. Yang style Mum (14th-15th century) sandstone sculpture from Kon Tum, Vietnam

Figure: Court Official with Hammer and Staff 19th century Edo peoples At its origins, the centralized city-state of Benin was founded by Edo-speaking peoples. The accounts by official court historians and descriptions provided by visitors evoke a vibrant cultural center continually redefined by its leadership through shifting internal and external power dynamics. According to oral tradition, circa 1300, Edo chiefs are reputed to have reached out to the leader of neighboring Ife, Oranmiyan, to establish a new divinely sanctioned royal dynasty. Since then, the investiture of Benins rulers to the title of obas has conferred upon them at once a role of chief priest officiating in important religious ceremonies and presiding over an elaborate structure of palace officials. During the fifteenth century reign of Oba Ewuare, Benins armies were formed and the fortification of its capital with a massive wall undertaken. In parallel, delegations of Portuguese traders assiduously sought to secur

A Dwarf Drummer

Figure of Osiris 664-30 B.C. Late Period-Ptolemaic Period Osiris, ruler of the Netherworld, is shown here in his traditional form, wrapped in an enveloping shroud from which only his head and hands emerge. These hold the crook and flail, symbols of kingship. On his head he wears the atef crown, the tall crown associated with Upper Egypt, flanked by ostrich plumes signifying maat, the cosmic order. A rearing uraeus cobra set on the front of the crown protects the god, ready to spit fire and poison at his enemies. Strapped to his chin is a long, plaited beard that curls up at the end, identifying him as divine. During the late second and first millennium B.C., it became common practice to dedicate figures of Osiris in his temples and shrines, as well as in sacred places honoring other deities and in animal cemeteries. The abundance of these figures reflects this gods importance, and also the changing cult practices that prompted the wide-scale offering of deity statuettes.. Figure of Os

Buddha Shakyamuni. Cup of Buddha Shakyamuni.

A Buddha Flanked by Figures Standing on a Mythical Creature. Thailand, Dvaravati, 8th-9th century. Sculpture. Schist

Raccoon Dog Disguised as Priest. Masakazu (Japan, late 18th-early 19th century). Japan, early 19th century. Costumes; Accessories. Ivory with staining, sumi, inlays

Standing Buddha, Anonymous, 700 - 800 Statue of standing Buddha, forearms lifted to hip height, fingers of the right hand have been broken down, rug closely on the body, without folds. (Divine Bronze, no. 4) Indonesia bronze (metal) Statue of standing Buddha, forearms lifted to hip height, fingers of the right hand have been broken down, rug closely on the body, without folds. (Divine Bronze, no. 4) Indonesia bronze (metal)

Figure, Mayan culture, Museum of Ethnology, Leiden, Netherlands

Head of a Bodhisattva. Culture: Central Asia. Dimensions: H. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm); W. 2 in. (5.1 cm); D. 2 in. (5.1 cm). Date: early 12th century. Museum: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA.

Vintage Photograph. Small wooden carved statue of Native American male figure wearing headdress with arm raised, Frame 3

Celestial Figure Emerging from a Flower 6th-7th century China (Xinjiang Autonomous Region) This female celestial (apsara) from of a complex halo springs from an open lotus and holds a garland of pearls to honor the deity she must have attended.. Celestial Figure Emerging from a Flower 39984

Shabti of the Adoratrice of Hathor Henettawy, wife of Painedjem I Third Intermediate Period ca. 1064-1055 B.C. This small figurine is a shabti from the burial of a royal woman named Henettawy who lived during the early 21st Dynasty at Thebes. During this era, control of Egypt was divided between the kings in the north, who ruled from Tanis in the Nile Delta, and the High Priests of the great state god Amun, who controlled the southern part of the country. Henettawy was a wife of the High Priest of Amun and King Painedjem I, who ruled from Thebes. She was also the daughter of a king, likely either Ramesses XI or Smendes (Nesbanebdjed) I. In the ancient Egyptian belief system, shabtis were avatars of the deceased who could be called upon to perform manual labor on his or her behalf in the afterlife. By Henettawys time, as many as 401 shabtis (a worker for each day of the year plus an overseer for each 10-day week) were included with the burials of wealthy people. Worker shabtis like thi

Painted stone sculpture depicting god Nappatecuhtli, Mexico

CRISTO DE CARRIZO REALIZADO EN MARFIL - SIGLO XI - ESCULTURA ROMANICA ESPAÑOLA. Location: ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM. LEON. SPAIN.

Bronze statue depicting a standing Buddha, from Sri Lanka. Dated 19th Century

Ma'at brings order to the cosmos. On the day of judgement the heart of the deceased is weighed against her feather. Ra is the Sun God and Seth is the god of chaos with the head of a mythological beast.

Seated Buddha ca. 16th century Cambodia. Seated Buddha. Cambodia. ca. 16th century. Silver. Sculpture

Standing Guanyin China. Standing Guanyin. China. Wood. late Tang (618-907)-early Song (960-1279) dynasty. Sculpture

Standing Padmapani Lokeshvara ca. mid-9th century Indonesia (Java). Standing Padmapani Lokeshvara 39026

Head of Krishna () 7th century Thailand (Phetchabun Province) The unusual faceted miter sitting high on the figure's forehead is a characteristic of sculptural production at the site of Si Thep, particularly in images of Krishna lifting up Mount Govardhana. Although this head shows affinities with pre-Angkor sculpture, the facial features, and especially the eyes, are linked more closely to the emerging Mon-Dvaravati style of Thailand.. Head of Krishna (). Thailand (Phetchabun Province). 7th century. Stone. Sculpture

Ibeji-Figur für Zwillingsanbetung Ibeji figure for twin worship, Yoruba, Ila-Orangun, Nigeria, 20th century, carved wood, pigment, MEB, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain LicenseRF Copyright: xZoonar.com/Tolox 23171179

Gold-plated silver statuette of a Ramesside king offering Maat, goddess of truth and order of the world

Arsenuphis' or (Harsenuphis) a Nubian god who is associated with the goddess Isis. New Kingdom (1550-1070) and has a cult cantered at Meroe. He was recognized as a 'Good Friend,' Iryhemes-Nefer, and worshiped in Dendereh.

Figure of the Enthroned Goddess Sakhmet, Lady of War and Disease, Tutankhamun's Tomb Treasures, World Archaeological Sensation, Replicas, Valley of the Kings, World's Most Famous Burial Site, Luxor, Thebes West, Egypt, Luxor, Thebes, West, Egypt, Africa

Naos Sistrum with the name of Apries 589-570 B.C. Late Period, Saite This sistrum exemplifies the developed form of the naos sistrum as it is known from the Middle Kingdom. Above the handle appears the face of a woman with cow ears wearing a straight wig. A cornice above her head carries a naos, or shrine, whose center is open, except for the uraeus appearing in the opening. Tall inward spiraling elements appear on either side of the shrine.The face is the fetish of the goddess Bat, a frontal female face with cow ears and tall horns; the tall volutes beside the shrine seem to be derived from Bats tall horns. Although Bat was a separate goddess until the Dynasty 11, probably her similar identity as a cow goddess along with other factors led to the adoption of her fetish for the naos sistrum that was already associated with Hathor. Following that convergence, the head with wig and naos is generally referred to as the Hathor emblem. Frontal countenances with their direct gaze have great

Sandstone figure of Bodhisattva Avalokitesara (Guanyin) Northern Qi dynasty, AD 550-577. Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who have chosen to stay in the world to help others achieve Buddhahood. Avalokitesara is the Bodhisattva of Compassion, known in Chinese as Guanyin. Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, 'he who listens to the cries of the world'. This Guanyin is covered in heavy jewellery, whose forms are borrowed from Western and Central Qsia. The rich adornment shows the growing popularity of Avalokitesara in the second half of the 6th century among devotees in China. British Museum

Head of Iyoba 18th-19th century Edo peoples In the Benin kingdom, the iyoba, or mother of the oba (king), occupies an important and historically significant place within Benin's political hierarchy. The title was first conferred upon Idia, the mother of king Esigie, who used her political skill to save her son's kingdom from dissolution in the late fifteenth century. Ever since that time, queen mothers have been considered powerful protectors of their sons and, by extension, the kingdom itself. Because of the enormous esteem in which they are held, iyobas enjoy privileges second only to the oba himself, such as a separate palace, a retinue of female attendants, and the right to commission cast brass sculptures for religious or personal use. Ancestral altars dedicated to past iyobas, like those of past obas, are furnished with cast brass commemorative heads. The heads of queen mothers are distinguished from those of kings by the forward-pointing peaks of their coral-beaded crowns. Comme

Tribal Mask

Female Holding Fan and Possible Pointed Headdress

Head of Hanuman, The Divine Monkey

The Hindu Goddess Uma

Menat counterpoise with figures of Hathor as a woman and a cow ca. 1390-1352 B.C. New Kingdom The menat is a ritual necklace, which consists of multiple strings of beads attached to a counterweight, also called a menat, shaped like a pendulum. The necklace could be worn by the goddess Hathor or by others associated with her, or her priestesses and eventually elite women could hold the counterweight in the hand to shake the beads to produce a rattling sound soothing to the goddess. The counterweight alone was a magical symbol of the goddess Hathor, and in the New Kingdom small menats were dedicated to the goddess by those visiting her sanctuaries. This fine openwork example includes three representations of the goddess, fully detailed on both sides: the goddesss head at the top of the menat underscores the identity of the menat as a fetish of the goddess Hathor, a full anthropomorphic figure of the goddess appears inside the central frame, and a third figure of the goddess in her cow f

A Garuda, symbol of royal power, Thailand, Southeast Asia, Asia

of 3