Vishnu (800s): Art, History and Details

Vishnu (800s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The axial stance and somber expression visually amplify the powerful nature of this four-armed Hindu god. The crown and fine textiles communicate his regal qualities. In his upper left hand, a conch shell signals the start of battle or the sound of OM at the opening of a mantra recited to quell inner demons. Vishnu’s followers glorify his ability to destroy demonic forces that bring imbalance and disorder, both throughout the world and within oneself.

Object facts

• Title: Vishnu
• Date: 800s
• Culture: Nepal
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: schist
• Dimensions: Overall: 43.8 cm (17 1/4 in.)
• Collection: Nepalese Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 1980.194

A detail from the museum

The dark stone was highly polished and once gleamed like bronze.

Collection credit

The Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1980.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 68, no. 6 (1981): 163–219.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.