Adhaidvipa
Textile
19th century (made), 20th century (made)
19th century (made), 20th century (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Jain cosmological mandala: plan of Adhaidvipa, or the two and a half continents where mortals dwell. In Jain cosmography the universe is divided into three kingdoms: the upper, occupied by the celestials; the middle, by the mortals; and the lower, belonging to the damned and the disorderly. The continents, which are concentrically arranged, are separated by two ring-shaped oceans. The central continent is Jambudvipa, the continent of the rose-apple tree. Lines and tusk-shapes representing mountain ranges can be seen as well as blue wavy rivers. Four pairs of tusk-shaped promontories project into the inner ocean or Lavanasamudra (Ocean of Salt). At the very centre is Mount Meru. The part of the outermost continent inhabited by mortals is bounded by a chain of mountains. Annotations on the map are in Devanagari script, probably in the Rajasthani dialect of Hindi, and give details of the lands, rivers and their dimensions. In each of the four corners sits a Jina or Tirthankara, one of the 24 Jain saviours (called victors or ford-makers), in meditating posture.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Title | Adhaidvipa (generic title) |
Materials and techniques | Opaque watercolour on cloth |
Brief description | Jain cosmological mandala: plan of Adhaidvipa; Gujarat, 19th century |
Physical description | Jain cosmological mandala: plan of Adhaidvipa, or the two and a half continents where mortals dwell. In Jain cosmography the universe is divided into three kingdoms: the upper, occupied by the celestials; the middle, by the mortals; and the lower, belonging to the damned and the disorderly. The continents, which are concentrically arranged, are separated by two ring-shaped oceans. The central continent is Jambudvipa, the continent of the rose-apple tree. Lines and tusk-shapes representing mountain ranges can be seen as well as blue wavy rivers. Four pairs of tusk-shaped promontories project into the inner ocean or Lavanasamudra (Ocean of Salt). At the very centre is Mount Meru. The part of the outermost continent inhabited by mortals is bounded by a chain of mountains. Annotations on the map are in Devanagari script, probably in the Rajasthani dialect of Hindi, and give details of the lands, rivers and their dimensions. In each of the four corners sits a Jina or Tirthankara, one of the 24 Jain saviours (called victors or ford-makers), in meditating posture. |
Dimensions |
|
Style | |
Object history | The painting was purchased by the Museum in London from Maggs Bros. Ltd in 1972. |
Subjects depicted | |
Collection | |
Accession number | CIRC.91-1970 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
Record created | November 15, 2002 |
Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest