A FRAGMENT OF A BLACK STONE STELE DEPICTING UMA-MAHESHVARA, PALA PERIOD, 10TH-12TH CENTURY Description Eastern India, West Bengal. The divine couple in an embrace, Maheshvara (Shiva) dotes on his divine lover, Uma (Parvati), lifting her gaze towards his with two fingers, stroking her chin, the primary left hand cupping her breast, his upper right hand holding a trident, the prabhamandala above with kirtimukha spewing floral curlicues from its gaping mouth at the crest flanked by garland-bearing apsaras Provenance From the private collection of Françoise Leroy-Laveissère, acquired in the 1960s-1980s during her tenure as an Asian Art expert at Hôtel Drouot, Paris Condition Good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, obvious losses, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations, scattered nicks and scratches, small chips to exposed areas. Weight: 3.8 kg (total) Dimensions including base 36x10X13 CM Uma-Maheshvara represents the sacred embrace, alingana, of the Lord Shiva joined with the Goddess Uma. The Great Ascetic, Lord Shiva, who was overcome with the beauty of Uma, Daughter of the Mountain, succumbed to their union for the benefit of his devotees (S. Kramrisch, Manifestations of Shiva, Philadelphia, 1981, p. 57). Their union is principally metaphysical, though during the Pala period, Shiva and Uma's relationship can be most immediately observed through their corporeal interplay. It is through their sensual relationship that they are meant to become a gateway for the devotee to enter their sacred realm. Here, the divine couple is featured in the moment before their union, the anticipation of which accentuates the possibility of entering the divine realm. Literature comparison Compare a closely related basalt stele of Uma-Maheshvara, 12th century, 63 cm high, in the Chittagong University Museum, Bangladesh, accession number CUM 771. lien video https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/tepul3q9msxkgi7ntntj5/AFJAV6rJCCKbDKhzp03RS5c?rlkey=p43e9r7wn642wf8v8ytxyk746&dl=0