Figure, of Vishnu

This bronze figure of the Hindu god Vishnu comes from Tanjore, south India and dates to the 14th or 15th centuries.

Vishnu is shown standing in Bhogasthanakamurti with four arms. He holds his typical attributes - a conch shell (shanka) and discus (chakra) - in his upper arms. The lower right hand is raised in the gesture of protection and reassurance - Abhaya Mudra. His lower left hand would have rested on his other attribute, the club (gada). The wheel symbolises the universal mind and the powers of creation and destruction that characterise the revolving universe.

The conch symbolises the origin of existence through its spiral form, the primeval waters and, when blown, primeval sound. The club symbolises divine authority.

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