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Chamunda

Place of OriginCentral India
Dateapprox. 1000-1100
MaterialsSandstone
DimensionsH. 21 1/2 in x W. 12 3/4 in x D. 5 in, H. 54.6 cm x W. 32.4 cm x D. 12.7 cm
Credit LineThe Avery Brundage Collection
Object numberB61S15+
DepartmentSouth Asian Art
ClassificationsSculpture
On View
Not on view
More Information

Two male demons set out to overcome the warrior goddess Durga. When she saw them, "her face in anger became black as ink. From her knitted brows sprang forth Kali [Chamunda], with her dreadful face. . . . She carried a strange skull-topped staff; she was shrouded in a tiger skin and looked utterly gruesome with her emaciated skin. Her mouth gaped widely, terrifying with its lolling tongue, and filled the directions with roars."

Here the terrifying multi-armed goddess holds a skull cup and missing hands once would have held implements of violence.
(Quotation from the 1500-year-old Hindu text Devi Mahatmya [The Glories of the Goddess] adapted from Thomas B. Coburn's translation in Vidya Dehejia, Devi, The Great Goddess, 1999)