- Title
- Processional Standard with the Head of Christ
- Date Made
- 18th century
- Medium
- Ivory with paint; silk and linen tassels
- Dimensions
- 17 1/4 x 1 3/4 in. (43.82 x 4.45 cm)
- Accession Number
- M.87.227.2a-b
- Collecting Area
- South and Southeast Asian Art
- Curatorial Notes
Festivals with ritual processions featuring icons, crosses, and religious pendants carried aloft, and often accompanied by the singing and reciting of hymns and prayers, were central to the historical liturgical practices of Christianity, especially Catholicism. Processions were performed in honor of numerous events in the life of the community, including commemorating holidays and pilgrimages to sacred shrines.
This festooned ivory standard is adorned with the Head of Christ. His eyes are half-shut as if in prayer or meditation, which may reflect an iconographic assimilation of divine physical features from earlier artistic depictions of the Buddha or a Jina. An additional noteworthy facial feature is the pronounced forelock, a frequent stylistic trait of South and Southeast Asian images of Christ and several Christian saints.
- Selected Bibliography
- Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Sculpture, vol.2. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; University of California Press, 1988.
