Ancient Sculptures: India · Egypt · Assyria · Greece · Rome at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai

 

Yajna Varaha: Boar Incarnation of Vishnu
Sunaari village, Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh, India; 900–1099 CE
Red sandstone
Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh, India 
135 (h) x 61 (w) x 145 (d) cm
© Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Government of Madhya Pradesh, India (1919)

 
 

Ancient Sculptures

India · Egypt · Assyria · Greece · Rome

December 2, 2023 – October 1, 2024

 

20 masterpieces. 5 cultures. A shared story.

The CSMVS Ancient World Project is a unique international and educational initiative by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai. It aims to bring great works of art from other cultures to Mumbai, witnesses to a shared human history, in order to deepen and enrich the study of world history in Indian schools and universities. Endorsed by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, the project is organised to coincide with the commemoration of 75 years of Indian Independence. The project’s first presentation, Ancient Sculptures: India · Egypt · Assyria · Greece · Rome is a transcontinental endeavor that brings together long-standing partners — the CSMVS, The J. Paul Getty Museum, and The British Museum, and for the first time, the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, along with museums from India, to showcase magnificent works of art from the ancient world.

This project is part of Getty’s Sharing Collections effort, which aims to promote a truly global understanding of the ancient world.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Exhibition Preview

 

Dionysos (Greek) or Bacchus (Roman): God of Intoxication, Abundance and Rebirth 
Marble
Found in Cyrene, Libya; Roman; 100–199 CE
The British Museum (1861,0725.2)
186 (h) x 78 (w) x 65 (d) cm
© The Trustees of the British Museum

Triton (Greek): God of the Seas
Marble 
Italy; 350–325 BCE
Antikensammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (SK 286)
131 (h) x 56 (w) x 41 (d) cm
© Antikensammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin

A Lion’s Head from the Temple of Artemis (Greek): Goddess of Wilderness and Hunting
Marble
Ephesos (modern Selcuk), Turkey; 550–510 BCE
The British Museum (2013,5014.1)
41 (h) x 35 (w) x 53 (d) cm
© The Trustees of the British Museum

A Child’s Sarcophagus
Marble
Lazio, Rome, Italy; Roman; 200–299 CE
The British Museum (1805,0703.132)
40 (h) x 136 (w) x 50 (d) cm
© The Trustees of the British Museum

Sekhmet: Ancient Egyptian Goddess of Destruction
Mottled Granodiorite
Probably found at Kom el-Hettan, Thebes (modern Karnak), Egypt; 18th Dynasty; c. 1390–1352 BCE
The British Museum (EA84)
191 (h) x 44 (w) x 39.5 (d) cm 
© The Trustees of the British Museum

Aphrodite (Greek) or Venus (Roman): Goddess of Love and Passion 
Marble
Italy; c. 150 CE
Antikensammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (SK 30)
137 (h) x 52 (w) x 38 (d) cm
© Antikensammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin

Dvarapala Yaksha
Basalt
Pitalkhora, Aurangabad, Maharashtra
2nd century BCE
S 66.58
© Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, CSMVS

Hapy: God of the Annual Flooding of the Nile
Sandstone 
Thebes (modern Karnak), Egypt; 22nd Dynasty; c. 900 BCE 
The British Museum (EA8)
220 (h) x 57 (w) x 92 (d) cm
© The Trustees of the British Museum

Funerary Vessel (Front)
Terracotta
Attributed to the Painter of Louvre MNB 1148
Made in Apulia, South Italy; c. 330 BCE
J. Paul Getty Museum (86.AE.680)
90.2 (h) x 35.5 (diameter) cm
© The J. Paul Getty Museum

Mixing Vessel (Front) 
Terracotta
Attributed to the Painter of Munich 1736
Made in Athens; Greece; Greek (Attic), c. 520 BCE 
J. Paul Getty Museum (75.AE.106), Gift of Seymour Weintraub 
47 (h) x 54 (diameter) cm
© The J. Paul Getty Museum

Mixing Vessel (Back)
Terracotta
Attributed to the Painter of Munich 1736
Made in Athens; Greece; Greek (Attic), c. 520 BCE 
J. Paul Getty Museum (75.AE.106), Gift of Seymour Weintraub 
47 (h) x 54 (diameter) cm
© The J. Paul Getty Museum

Funerary Vessel (Back)
Terracotta
Attributed to the Painter of Louvre MNB 1148
Made in Apulia, South Italy; c. 330 BCE
J. Paul Getty Museum (86.AE.680)
90.2 (h) x 35.5 (diameter) cm
© The J. Paul Getty Museum

The lotus medallion
Railing Crossbar from the Great Stupa of Amaravati, Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh
Limestone
2nd Century CE
89 (l) x 74 (h) x 13 (d) cm
CSMVS 90.8/5
© Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, CSMVS

Gajalakshmi
Basalt 
Pitalkhora, Maharashtra
2nd century BCE 
60 X 103 X 29 cm
S 66.57
© Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, CSMVS

Winged Figure: Panel from the Northwest Palace of Ashurnasirpal II
Gypsum alabaster
Kalhu (modern Nimrud), Iraq; Neo Assyrian; 883–859 BCE
CSMVS, Mumbai (F 11)
126 (h) x 69 (w) x 10.5 (d) cm
© Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, CSMVS

Yajna Varaha: Boar Incarnation of Vishnu
Sunaari village, Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh, India; 900–1099 CE
Red sandstone
Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh, India 
135 (h) x 61 (w) x 145 (d) cm
© Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Government of Madhya Pradesh, India (1919)

Yajna Varaha: Boar Incarnation of Vishnu
Sunaari village, Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh, India; 900–1099 CE
Red sandstone
Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh, India 
135 (h) x 61 (w) x 145 (d) cm
© Vidisha District Archaeological Museum, State Department of Archaeology Archives and Museums, Government of Madhya Pradesh, India (1919)

Eagle-headed Winged Figure and the Sacred Tree: Panel from the Northwest Palace of Ashurnasirpal II 
Gypsum alabaster
Kalhu (modern Nimrud), Iraq; Neo Assyrian; 883–859 BCE 
CSMVS, Mumbai (F 9)
110 (h) x 69 (w) x 10.5 (d) cm
© Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, CSMVS

 
News 14, Exhibitions 3Editorial TeamArt of the Ancestors, Steven G. Alpert, Asian Art, Island Southeast Asian Art, Oceanic Art, Asiatica, Ethnographica, Ethnographic Art, Art Collection, Fine Art, Primitive Art, Indonesian Art, Tribal Art, Eyes of the Ancestors, Dr. Reimar Schefold