Lingodhbhava murti
The Lingodhbhava murti, literally a representation of emergence of the Linga, or Shiva Manifesting within the Linga of Flames is a four foot-tall sandstone sculpture made around 1150 C.E. during the Chola dynasty, in Tamil Nadu in south India. It depicts a contest between the Hindu gods Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu. The large figure of Shiva is seen emerging from a pillar of fire while Brahma, taking the form of a swan, attempts to reach the top of the fire and Vishnu, in the form of the boar Varaha, roots for its base. Depictions of the scene, which is described in Hindu purana texts from the 8th century C.E., are typically found behind the primary shrine image of Vishnu in the first precinct of South Indian temples.
The sculpture was purchased by the Art Fund of Birmingham in 2008 from Art of the Past gallery in New York City and placed on indefinite loan to the Birmingham Museum of Art, where it was displayed as part of the museum's Asian collection.
In 2011 Subhash Kapoor, owner of Art of the Past, was charged in India with smuggling antiquities which were acquired illegally and falsifying documents in order to be able to sell them, allegedly reaping more than a hundred million dollars. In 2015 the Birmingham Museum of Art was notified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that the sculpture was likely removed from India illegally, and began preparing to repatriate it.
The Lingodhbhava murti was removed from exhibit in August 2018 and transported to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York to be processed as evidence of Kapoor's criminal activities. It was formally presented to the Republic of India at a ceremony in New York on September 4 attended by museum director Graham Boettcher and Indian Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty.
References
- Edgemon, Erin (September 5, 2018) "Birmingham museum returns stolen sculpture to India." The Birmingham News
External link
- Birmingham Museum of Art website