Altar Relief
Sculpture
c. early 15th century (made)
c. early 15th century (made)
Altar slab
Object details
| Object type | |
| Title | Altar Relief (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Stone |
| Brief description | Stone, Majapahit style, East Java, Indonesia |
| Physical description | Altar slab |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Gallery label | Altar Relief
About 1425
This relief resembles altars on mountain shrines in Java.
These altars may have had a ritual function as a back to a
seat for the gods. The relief depicts Krishna, accompanied
by Satyabhama, acquiring the magic wish-fulfilling tree,
Parijata. This legend from a popular Javanese court poem
was preserved in later periods through performances of
the wayang purwa shadow puppet theatre.
Volcanic stone
Indonesia (East Java)
Given by the Royal Asiatic Society
Museum no. IS.10-1979(14/06/2011) |
| Historical context | This double-sided relief entered the collection of the Royal Asiatic Society in 1832, the gift of a resident of a resident of Surabaya, east Java. It resembles "altars" on a number of mountain shrines in Java and may have had a ritual function as the back to a seat for the gods (sanggar agung). The seat itself served as a symbol of the world mountain in which the gods reside (Mount Meru). The relief depicts Krisna, accompanied by Satyabhama, acquiring the magic wish-fulfilling tree Parijata. This legend, from a popular Javanese court poem (kakawin), was preserved in later periods through performances of the wayang purwa shadow puppet theatre. The stylisation of the figures in this relief suggests one source for the conventions seen in the shadow puppets of east Java. |
| Production | East Java, Indonesia |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | IS.10-1979 |
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| Record created | February 13, 2000 |
| Record URL |
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