Woman Holding a Baby Elephant
4th-5th century
Asia: Pakistan; Asia: Afghanistan
On View

This bust exhibits realistic modeling and delicately rendered facial features, which are much easier to execute in stucco than in stone. Curious
is the iconography of the woman holding a baby elephant: elephants symbolize virtues usually attributed to men, such as strength and virility. However, Maya, the Buddha’s mother, dreamt that a baby elephant entered her womb at the time of her son’s immaculate conception.

Details

  • Title: Woman Holding a Baby Elephant
  • Date: 4th-5th century
  • Medium: Stucco
  • Dimensions: 9-1/2 x 4-1/2 in. (24.1 x 11.4 cm)
  • Credit Line: The Norton Simon Foundation
  • Accession Number: F.1975.14.4.S
  • Copyright: © The Norton Simon Foundation

Object Information

  • Pal, Pratapaditya, Asian Art at the Norton Simon Museum, Volume 1: Art from the Indian Subcontinent, 2003, no. 37 p. 71
  • Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1202 p. 382

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