Untitled

Unknown

12th century · Copper alloy · Asian Art

A tirthankara is standing in kayotsarga, or austerity meditation. The figure is austere, completely lacking in "adornment" (alamkara), a virtue in Hindu sculpture but seen by Digambara Jains as counter to the vows of renunciation. The short hair curls are an anomaly, as they mimic the Buddhist convention of short curls left after cutting off the hair with a sword rather than the required Jain practice of plucking out one's own hair. The extended earlobes share a common ancestry, denoting a personage who once wore heavy jewelry, implying that all jinas were of high birth.

Artist

Unknown

Date

12th century

Medium

Copper alloy

Culture

India (Deccan, Karnataka)

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Gift of Florence and Herbert Irving, 2015