Architectural ornament - 1950-1960 - Ancient Fragment of a Temple

A fascinating and rare solid-wood architectural fragment finely hand-carved, depicting the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, dating from the second half of the 20th century. The piece features on the front a characteristic dark patina of its era, with widespread and captivating natural flaking that, at points of historical wear, reveals the warm tone of ancient wood.

The absolute genuineness of the artistic craftsmanship of the period is evidenced by the charming asymmetries and irregularities of the entirely hand-worked engraving — particularly evident in the facial features, in the details of the jewelry, and in the upper floral medallion — and by the deep natural grain and cracks of the old wood, impossible to find in modern serial reproductions.

The back and the mortise-and-tenon edges show the original chisel-and-axe workmanship, typical of decorative elements removed from ancient temples or ceremonial chariots (Ratha) of southern India. The base section, visible in detail, reveals the living structure of the original trunk with growth rings and the typical radial splits from natural drying of the massive period wood.

The object presents itself as structurally solid and shows a magnificent worn patina. A timemarked defect is noted on the upper left profile of the aureole (absence of the symmetric curl compared to the right side), clearly visible also from the back where the arch’s shoulder shows the original diagonal detachment that occurred at the moment of removal from the site.