A SANDSTONE FIGURE OF A CELESTIAL WOMAN, SURASUNDARI
Central India or Rajasthan, 11th century. Carved in deep relief with somewhat exaggerated yet elegant curves, her face with slender elongated eyes downcast above an alluring smile, her sensuous torso with large rounded breasts adorned with a necklace falling between them.

Provenance: From the collection of Helen Cunningham and Ted Newbold. Ted Newbold (1930-2018) was a broker and civic leader in Philadelphia, with a lifelong passion for art. In 1984, he married Helen Cunningham, who shared his love for the arts and collecting. Newbold was one of the founders of the “Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art” and a 50-year trustee of the Museum itself. He was a board member of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts the Fleisher Art Memorial. Works of art donated by Helen Cunningham and Ted Newbold are in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Woodmere Art Museum, and the Fleischer Art Memorial, among others.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive weathering, wear and losses, small nicks here and there, few structural cracks.

Weight: 8.6 kg (incl. panel)
Dimensions: Height 37.5 cm (excl. panel)

Mounted on an associated wood panel. (2)

The present figure is not consciously posing. She is a surasundari, a celestial beauty whose presence on the temple wall is auspicious. Such figures strengthen the potency of the prayers offered in the temple as their beauty beckons the deity to listen to them.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related sandstone figure of a celestial woman, of slightly larger size (43.2 cm high) and also dated c. 11th century, at Bonhams New York in Indian, Himalayan & Southeast Asian Art on 17 March 2014, lot 78, sold for USD 87,500.