Vintage bronze patinated statue of Ardhanarishvara.
From India this is a well made example with nice detail.
The statue would have been made using the lost wax technique where the statue is first crafted from wax, a mould is created using the wax statue and then molten bronze is poured into the mould, displacing the wax.
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Ardhanarishvara, (Sanskrit: Lord Who Is Half Woman) composite male-female figure of the Hindu god Shiva together with his consort Parvati.
The symbolic intent of the figure, according to most authorities, is to signify that the male and female principles are inseparable. A predecessor of Ardhanarishvara appears in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, which states that the first creature was of the same size and kind as a man and woman closely embracing. He caused himself to fall into two pieces, and from him a husband and wife were born.
From India this is a well made example with nice detail.
The statue would have been made using the lost wax technique where the statue is first crafted from wax, a mould is created using the wax statue and then molten bronze is poured into the mould, displacing the wax.
//
Ardhanarishvara, (Sanskrit: Lord Who Is Half Woman) composite male-female figure of the Hindu god Shiva together with his consort Parvati.
The symbolic intent of the figure, according to most authorities, is to signify that the male and female principles are inseparable. A predecessor of Ardhanarishvara appears in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, which states that the first creature was of the same size and kind as a man and woman closely embracing. He caused himself to fall into two pieces, and from him a husband and wife were born.