GANESHA BELL

Bronze with traces of gold

Cambodia, 13th century

Dimensions: Height 14 cm Wide 5 cm Depth 5 cm

Weight: 264 grams

Ganesha, the remover of obstacles and one of the most popular gods in Hinduism, here standing on a bell. Dressed in short striped dhoti, wearing anklets, armlets and bracelets, holding a pot or vessel and an oval object. He is wearing a large conical crown.

Provenance:
Collection Madeleine und Erich Dammann , 1950 -2012

The journey
Newlyweds Madeleine and Erich Dammann took their first trip in 1950. Their travel route was determined by their great shared curiosity about foreign cultures, by climactic circumstances, and by the financial resources available to them. In 1963, they settled in Switzerland with the birth of their first child. Erich became an editor for Swiss television, and worked for the Rundschau known for their reports. His focus: exciting reports from around the world That made it possible for him to travel to the most remote corners of the world, and to bring back and collect art and other objects from these places. His wife Madeleine regularly accompanied him. For more than 50 years, the couple pursued their shared passion and went exploring together – on a journey through many cultures.

The collection
The collection developed completely situationally. It was influenced by the couple’s great fascination for life in other cultures. This is how the collection came to include everyday objects, furniture, weapons, masks, musical instruments, and jewelry, as well as representations of revered figures, minerals, and many other interesting items.

Madeleine and Erich Dammann visited countries more as observant “guests” than as tourists, living in the respective cultures and becoming a part of them.

Together with their three children, Madeleine and Erich lived with and in their collection, which influenced the family’s home visually and atmospherically.