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Lokeshvara and Tara, Bodhisattvas of Compassion
Made in Nepal
Malla Period (1200-1769), 1570
Thvapati Madakolathasina, Nepalese, c. 1550 - 1600
Colors on cloth; cloth mounting
Image: 22 3/4 x 18 inches (57.8 x 45.7 cm) Mount: 31 3/4 x 19 inches (80.6 x 48.3 cm) Frame: 39 7/8 x 28 3/4 inches (101.3 x 73 cm)
Stella Kramrisch Collection, 1994

The central deities in this painting wear skirt styles distinctive of the Malla period. Festive red makeup colors the palms of the figures' hands and feet, and the foreheads of all the women display red tika powders that distinguish married Newar women even today. In the golden torana framing the painting's central couple, the lotus pillars support an ornate foliate arch topped by the red face of a mythical lion-bird, defining an auspicious space. The colorful checkerboard patterns that edge the torana columns are also a stylistic feature of the Malla period. Moreover, the painting's inscription provides the year in which it was made.

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