Surya; prophyritic basalt; Patna, Bihar; early 10th century

The Hindu deity Surya is considered the source of light, and as the solar deity can be traced to the earliest Indian texts, the Rigveda. He is one of the twelve Adityas, presides over the 6th month of the year and is also the guardian of the SW quarter. The sun deity is represented standing erect, holding lotus blossoms in his raised hands. The high boots and short sword are a legacy of his Iranian ancestry. He wears a high faceted headdress decorated in a trellis of diamond-shaped quatrefoils. He wears elaborate earrings which dangle on his shoulders below flaring streamers. He is richly be-jewelled over a diaphanous robe which falls full-length to his feet. At his feet is depicted his half-brother, the charioteer Aruna (the Morn). On the proper right, stand the god Pingala with pen and ink-bottle (broken away) and the goddess Nikshuta (Earth). On the left is the god Dandanayaka holding a staff (danda) and the goddess Rajni ("Air"). At the god's feet is his principal consort Prabha ("brightness"). Above the attendant divinities are the female archers Usha and Pratyusha driving off the hosts of night. At each top corner appears a celestial singer (Gandharva) in a cloud, bearing a garland. In the lower register are the seven horses and Surya's chariot, represented by the spoked wheel.
The figures are carved in high relief against a flat rhomboid-shaped back slab with curved angles at the optics is decorated with a border of abstract floral motifs on a criss-crossed ground. The stele has a stone tenon in the centre of the base for slotting into its original architectural setting.

Given by the Architectural Association, Royal Architectural Museum, 37 Great Smith Street, Westminster, S.W

Given by the Architectural Association, to which this and 51 related architectural pieces from ruined temples devastated by Muslim raiders in the 14th and 15th centuries on the twin summits of Mount Shatrunjaya, Palitana in Gujarat, IM 53-112-1916, had been presented by Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere, Ist baronet, G.C.B, C.C.S.I. (1815-1884), former Governor of Bombay, in 1877.

As John Guy writes in The Peaceful Liberators the high degree of stylistic uniformity suggests that these pieces were collected from a single temple, or at least from sites that were contemporary. They are related to known Solanki dynasty temples of the 11th and 12th centuries: inscriptions record that endowments were made to the Shatrunjaya temples during the reign of Siddharaja Jayasimha (1095-1142), a Solanki ruler renowned for his patronage.

Given by the Architectural Association, Royal Architectural Museum, 37 Great Smith Street, Westminster, S.W. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project.

R.P. 1915-3836M and R.P. 1916-2270M

Bihar, Eastern India

The Hindu deity Surya is considered the source of light, and as the solar deity can be traced to the earliest Indian texts, the Rgveda. The sun deity is represented standing erect, holding lotus blossoms in both his raised hands. The high boots and short sword are a legacy of his Iranian ancestry, a feature he retains well into the medieval period. At his feet is depicted his half-brother charioteer Aruna. On the proper right stand the god Pingala with pen and ink-bottle (broken away) and the goddess Nikshubha (“Earth”). On the left is the god Dandanayaka holding a staff (danda) and the goddess Rajni ("Air"). At the god's feet is his principal consort Prabha ("brightness"; later known as Mahasveta) . Above the attendant divinities are the female archers Usha and Pratyusha driving off the hosts of the night. At each top corner of the lotus-decorated frame are celestial singers (vidyadharas) in cloud, bearing garlands. In the lower register are the seven horses and Surya's chariot, here represented by a single spoked wheel. All the horses face left, a unique configuration.

The cult of Surya maintained a key position in the hierarchy of deities into the medieval period. Although usurped by Visnu and his solar aspects, Surya nonetheless
maintained his position as a major, if secondary, deity. Major temples were dedicated to Surya across India, as witnessed by Konarak in Orissa, and Modera in Gujarat. This sculpture, of unrecorded origin, undoubtedly graced a temple of some importance in Bihar, eastern India.

IM.109-1916