Female Attendants

700s

Female Attendants, 700s. India, Kashmir. Ivory; overall: 7.5 cm (2 15/16 in.); base: 2.2 x 2.3 cm (7/8 x 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1972.35 These elegant female figures would have originally been in a portable, wooden shrine with a central ivory depicting the Buddha. One holds a chaurī, or flywhisk, a frequent attribute of attendants, while the one originally on the left holds a lotus. Both display a graceful contraposto (tribhanga). Their rich jewelry contrasts successfully with the softness of their flesh. Traces of turquoise paint remain on their bodies, suggesting the presence of fabric.