Nandi India, Tamil Nadu, Chola dynasty 1000s-1100s granite, 22 inches (57.2 cm) high Gift of Irene Littledale Downs 1964.14

Nandi is a zebu, a species of Indian bull with a large hump over the shoulders and a droopy dewlap. He is intimately associated with the Hindu deity Shiva. He is the animal form of the god and his most ardent devotee. Carved from a block of granite, this sculpture comes from Tamil Nadu in South India, where images of Nandi are often placed before the entrance to a Shiva temple, facing the inner shrine.


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