Hoysala is the term used for the architecture and the iconography that developed in present-day Karnataka under the patronage of the Hoysala dynasty rulers.
Having flourished in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, its structures stand as testimony to a Karnata Dravida aesthetic.
The murti that you see on this page depicts the Devi Mariamman, who is the equivalent of Devi Parvati or Devi Shitala of the North.
From Her iconography to every other detail of the sculpture, She looks like She has been handpicked from the garbhagriha (inner precinct) of an ancient Hoysala temple.
Devi Mariamman is seated in lalitasana on a giant lotus throne. She is possessed of eight arms and, as such, is the Ashtabhujadharini. She is clad in nothing but a dhoti below the navel, the silken fabric of which gathers in lifelike folds over Her legs.
A world of gold adornments on Her upper body and divine weapons, including a kapala (skullcup) in each of Her hands, a twin symbol of the feminine aesthetic and omnipotence. On Her brow sits a tall crown that tapers towards the top. It is flanked by the ferocious hood of the panchanaga, the texture of its underbelly having been executed with superb detail.
The composition is placed on a wide-set quadrilateral pedestal that features a row of latticeworked lotus petals followed by a row of lotus petal engravings. The legs of the pedestal are short and shaped like the lion’s paw. A strikingly symmetrical aureole, with minimal engravings, completes the composition.
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