ICONOGRAPHY OF TWELVE SCULPTURES OF THE STATE MUSEUM OF BHUBANESWAR

Abstract

The iconography of six Shakta and six Vashnavite sculptures of the State Museum of Bhubaneswar is the main aspect of Odishan sculptural art in Eastern India. Saktism is a very important cult among the Hindus in all over Odisha as well as India. The beginning of Sakti cult in Odisha may be traced back to the days of Mahabharata. The growing popularity of the Sakti cult in Odisha is evident from the placing of independent sculptures of Sakti. The State Museum of Bhubaneswar has preserved a good number of the Sakta sculptures, which are collected from the different parts of the state. Among these, six Sakta sculptures are discussed in this article. The Vaishnavism was become widespread in the state of Odisha in the past. The cult of Gopinath Krishna was made popular during the Ganga era of Odiasha. The Ganga period marked the climax of Vaishnavism in Odisha. Some of the Vaishnavite sculptures are collected from different parts of Odisha and now these are preserved in the State Museum for public display. Among the preserved Vashnavite sculptures of the State Museum, two Varaha, two Krishna and two Vishnu images are also discussed in the present article. The above twelve sculptures of state museum are the well workmanship of the sculptors of the medieval Odisha. In fact, the above twelve sculptures are very important for iconographical study. That is why; the aim of this article is to highlight the iconography of twelve preserved sculptures of Odisha State Museum, Bhubaneswar.