The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Grey-brown sandstone full-body sculpture of the god Agni with flames flaring behind his head and flanked on either side in four rows by figures a fifth his size, then a third his size at the base, including a goat and figures with human bodies and goat heads. Agni wears a crown and jewelry, has a moustache and small pointed beard, with his left arm hanging down and the other broken off at the elbow.

Agni, God of Fire

c. 1000

India, Uttar Pradesh

sandstone
Overall: 73 x 40.6 cm (28 3/4 x 16 in.)
Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1955.51
Location: 243 Indian and Southeast Asian

Did You Know?

This sculpture is on the cover of the Penguin Classics edition of the Hindu "Laws of Manu."

Description

The Hindu god Agni, with flames rising behind him, is the figural form of the sacrificial fire, central to religious practice in India since the early second millennium BC. Agni’s mount is the goat, and together they preside over the Southeast. In the upper registers, Brahmans perform fire sacrifice, preach to disciples, and practice "hot yoga."
  • Sir Eric Geddes [1875–1937]
    ?–1955
    (Spink & Son, Ltd., London, England, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1955–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • “Part II. Annual Report Issue for the Year 1955.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 43, no. 6, 1956, pp. 131–167. Mentioned: p. 142 www.jstor.org
    Ward, William. "Agni, God of Fire." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 42, no. 9 (November 1955): 205–208. Reproduced: p. 206; Mentioned: p. 207 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 758 archive.org
  • Reinstallation of “Krishna Lifting Mount Govardhan”. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 12, 2024-November 2, 2025).
    Stories from Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).
    Art: The International Language. The Cleveland Museum of Art (October 2-November 4, 1956).
  • {{cite web|title=Agni, God of Fire|url=false|author=|year=c. 1000|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1955.51