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Dvarapala or DvarapalakaSanskrit, "door guard"; matched mirror pair (New Jersey)
condition:
good
size / dimensions:
!0'X10"X 4.5"
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How? They may be donated, sold, I don't quite know, but if any of this seems like something you understand, drop me a note and ahead, thank you.
I am totally in the dark about these fellows I call Mr. Right and Mr. Left. The work was freehand carved, both are mirror visions of the same deity, perhaps saying," I am a single purpose god, with two personalities"- my guess. These are in a way art, and religious in purpose. Exactly who or when they were carved is my quest. They were installed in an alter-like , side-board, console type cabinet having a table "whose top surface is supported by corbels or brackets" The "brackets" are these two fine fellows created by an artist possibly centuries ago. I have no idea. But they are old, while the woodwork is much newer. The cabinetry is supported by legs that also appear distinctly older, but have also been altered or from other work. In total the piece is an ensemble, assembled with wood screws I might be able to more closely date.
These two individuals were hand carved, possibly in Indonesia, when is my question. They were recovered from barn storage for at least 60 years but appear to be centuries older. The pair were carefully fastened with very short brads which I saved, The pair measure just over 10" tall and their wingspan is also near 10" wide.
They appear to hold up the top while standing on the bottom shelf. These fellows were carefully lightly cleaned and placed in storage. The cabinet went back in a barn. The surfaces, each 7 ft. wide, are a hardwood plywood with varying widths .
The cabriole legs are extremely curvaceous, a deep dark wood. They are not unique as I have found similar designs in other furniture and tables. They have carved features- normally fierce faces, which I noticed , when viewed in profile, exhibit a second side view of the face as well! There must be a particular name for this type of carving?
I use CL Chat for commo. Please see my images, many more are available, please excuse my poor camera work.
Again Thank you all. If you don't mind I will post notes about the comments on this post for help.
Davis