The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 19, 2024
Colossal Head of a Deva
c. 1200
Overall: 71.3 x 50 x 47 cm (28 1/16 x 19 11/16 x 18 1/2 in.)
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
The deity’s conical tiara consists of a diadem with floral decoration and is topped by a five-tiered lotus narrowing upward.Description
This head is from one of the gods (devas in Sanskrit) who, according to Hindu myth, churned the primordial Ocean of Milk to extract the nectar of immortality. Using a mountain as a churning rod and a serpent as the rope, the gods on one side and the demons on the other vied to win the nectar. The gods prevailed and achieved immortality.- ?–early 1970s(Spink Ltd., London, England, sold to a private collector)early 1970s–2003Private Collection, consigned to Sotheby's New York after the collector's deathMarch 26, 2003(Sotheby's New York, NY, March 26, 2003, lot 28, sold to John and Maxeen Flower)March 26, 2003–2011Dr. John and Maxeen Stone Flower [1928–2010], Shaker Heights, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art2011–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Sotheby's, New York. Indian & Southeast Asian Art. 26 March 2003. Lot 28. Mentioned and Reproduced: Lot 28, pp. 38–39
- Beyond Angkor: Cambodian Sculpture from Banteay Chhmar. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 14, 2017-March 25, 2018).
- {{cite web|title=Colossal Head of a Deva|url=false|author=|year=c. 1200|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2011.147