Goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati (verso), from a Kalighat album

Cleveland Museum of Art

Goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati (verso), from a Kalighat album

Date
c. 1890
Medium
Gum tempera, graphite, ink, and tin on paper
Culture
Eastern India, Bengal, Kolkata, Kalighat
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Institution
Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID
162508

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

This is a symmetrical painting of two goddesses, each standing on a lotus (symbolizing beauty and purity). Both are considered in Bengali folklore to be sisters and the daughters of the goddess Durga. Lakshmi, goddess of fortune, prosperity, and beauty, and wife of Vishnu, is holding an unfinished flower. Sarasvati, goddess of knowledge, learning, and patroness of the fine arts, is holding a stringed instrument, which represents refined training and education. Sarasvati is white skinned, signifying purity.

View at Cleveland Museum of Art ↗

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.

Get printable QR codes

Open QR codes for this object page and the museum record. They stay collapsed until needed.

Open this page QR destination: https://linkedculture.org/q/q1.e_of_kARnPeabzIk.agmg1rAGxR7E0B9-wOtaYoSswXkXFMzsNaX5sN-zXbIpD1qjTm6QQxvcloMVJYVlZ964mSyIybmr85XmEJBZtAu6vOtZV9hMpkFk-scdxAP2excxLH-JP0co_nDFuijUUA5s3Hrgu601eCZqbWd3Y4HOatEHE_TWvCQzdJuY54UprxX_gSnZ1-vPtbS6hVxGm1uzQ-ygaVfmqv9C9dmYCs0WScRIH9TFvQoB3jxUnuYgI2RmQuMcQaN-FmnpmN_eoMmnyNUkSR-E0SFM3s1FezO-3M9RTRyOqbyFqDSilrkgoVDMeASee at Cleveland Museum of Art QR destination: https://linkedculture.org/q/q1.58HCp-YMKAaUZZAC.w3z_8usCfRNroPMsd1cODVwloloTN82W9s8KcIAYJFd0YHaT5S4IbAjnOh98WNeZ2svcrpSzIpIbgyCvVT7GkIyFvhE1elUOWJoh84ECX6yQ_V21e4_ZjB_YoF8IurfJ8wSX9RVX0HnMBFmXeiNFVzu2PdJpn6zgf7cd1NvmxCX4r7VsIjdGVlNZE0BgFHStLZP3WSlBVbMNlp1Ubq05inLjuE5eGf_LzAXX4Dyk-gvi627mY30QF5ffKq8ptY4Iz7o2pzzYZgKz5Nc32alxJ3X5EVdp8CAyxVKTZIdjb5Im
Open this page
See at Cleveland Museum of Art

Provenance & credit

As published by the source institution. Coverage varies — not every institution's open-data feed includes ownership history.

Credit line
Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward
Provenance
?–2003: William E. Ward [1922–2004], Solon, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art | 2003–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Related across collections

Semantically similar works from Cleveland Museum of Art and other institutions.