Vishnu with Avatars
Social Media Share Tools
Object Details
- Provenance
- Reportedly 1968-1992
- David R. Nalin purchased in East Pakistan (modern-day Bangladesh) [1]
- From 1992
- Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of David Nalin [2]
- Notes:
- [1] David R. Nalin is an American physiologist who worked at the Cholera Research Hospital in Dhaka when it was part of Pakistan from 1967 until the Liberation War of 1971, and then again in 1972 after the creation
- of Bangladesh. Nalin reported that he purchased the sculpture in May 1968, when he worked at the Cholera hospital, see tax form 8283, December 3, 1992, copy in object file. Nalin employed Peter Marks Works of Art to manage his collection. In 1989, Marks provided the Freer Gallery of Art with a "summary of acquisition, ownership, and history" relating to a sculpture now in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (NGA89.1365), copy in object file.
- In the document, Marks instructed that the contents of the document should "apply to any object in the [Nalin] collection." The summary reports that in 1969, Nalin shipped his collection from Dhaka to Chittagong then onto Karachi and finally onto New York. Nalin "assumed[d] that the customs agent[s] handled all clearances and declarations according to the laws and agreements in effect at the time."
- [2] See deed of gift, July 21, 1992, copy in accession file.
- Research completed November 14, 2022
- Collection
- National Museum of Asian Art Collection
- Exhibition History
- The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas (March 25, 2023 - ongoing)
- Sculpture of South Asia and the Himalayas (November 19, 1992 to July 9, 2017)
- Previous custodian or owner
- Dr. David R. Nalin
- Credit Line
- Gift of Dr. David R. Nalin
- 11th century
- Period
- Pala-Sena dynasty
- Accession Number
- S1992.59
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Sculpture
- Medium
- Black schist
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 105.2 x 52.5 x 28.7 cm (41 7/16 x 20 11/16 x 11 5/16 in)
- Origin
- Bangladesh
- On View
- Sackler Gallery 22a: The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas
- Related Online Resources
- Google Cultural Institute
- See more items in
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
- Topic
- stone
- Hinduism
- fish
- Vishnu
- Krishna
- boar
- turtle
- Pala-Sena dynasty (750 - 1100)
- Bangladesh
- Kurma
- Varaha
- Matsya
- Narasimha
- Vamana
- Parasurama
- Kalki
- asura
- South Asian and Himalayan Art
- sudarshana chakra
- Record ID
- fsg_S1992.59
- Metadata Usage (text)
- Not determined
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye382f86bf6-a4da-45c5-8109-1e356a4bda13
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.