Vaishnava Libation Cup Rhinoceros Horn Nepal

The inverted interior of the horn forming a yoni shaped vessel delicately carved in relief with a four-armed Vishnu standing on the tail feathers of his vahana Garuda and embracing his consort Lakshmi standing on the tortoise, all supported by a lotus flower and backed by a flaming halo, a bilobate yoni-form depression at the center of the richly patinated cup and a sankha in relief at the mouth, the rim etched with a design of flowing water, the exterior of the vessel carved in relief depicting avatars of Vishnu including the fish Matsya, Kurma the tortoise, the boar-headed Varaha and the lion-headed Narasimha, the dwarf Vamana bearing a parasol, Parusharama, Rama and Balarama all with four arms, Buddha, and Kalki riding the horse, with the avatars joined by a four-armed Ganesha and a Garuda with wings spread beneath the pouring lip of the vessel.

Loaned to the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 1988-93

The yoni, representing the female generative organ, is worshipped as a symbol of fertility, believed to be the seat of tejas, spiritual power and ardour. It is regarded as the perfection of beauty and symmetry and likened to a lotus flower, the origin of the mandala and the energy of cosmic waters. The water represented around the rim of the vessel refers to the primeval oceans where Vishnu envisioned the creation of the world while reclining on the coils of his cosmic snake Ananta. A sacred Vaishnava text, the Vishnu Purana, states that a rhinoceros horn libation vessel consumes all sin: this fine and rare example from Nepal would thus be highly venerated for its symbolic powers as a ritual vessel. The inclusion of Shaivite god Ganesha with the avatars of Vishnu highlights the open religious faith in Nepal, where sectarian boundaries are not typically observed. The elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati, and the lord of accomplishment and destroyer of obstacles, would naturally be welcomed by Nepalese Vaishnavite vajracharya performing ritual. Compare similarly shaped rhinoceros horn libation vessels, see Chapman, 1999, nos. 393-6, pp. 273-4. As discussed by Chapman, a conversation is reported between Dr Esmond Bradley Martin and the Nepalese artist Ratna Lall Silpakar who recounted that in the past he had been commissioned to carve rhinoceros horn vessels specifically with Vaishnavite motifs. Indeed all the recorded rhinoceros horn vessels from Nepal are dedicated to Vishnu. Chapman further records a Vaishnavite bowl of similar shape on loan to the Victoria & Albert Museum that was presented to King George V in 1911 by the King of Nepal: Nepalese kings are traditionally considered to be incarnations of Vishnu, see ibid, p. 272.

Rhinoceros are indigenous to Nepal, inhabiting the Terai region in the foothills of the Himalayas near the border with India, thus providing a source for the horns used in these carvings. This fine and delicately sculpted vessel, with a rich and deep patina through ritual use, is one of the finest recorded examples. The elegantly poised forms of Vishnu and his wife Lakshmi are typical of the late Malla period (1480-1768). Compare the attenuated torso and subtly flexed stance of a Nepalese Lokeshvara dated 1597/98 in the John and Berthe Ford collects ion, see Pal, 2001, no. 103, p. 187.