Kurukulla and seven other divinities

Historical period(s)
18th-19th century
Medium
Color and gold on panel
Dimensions
H x W: 50.1 x 35.2 cm (19 3/4 x 13 7/8 in)
Geography
Tibet
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1905.75
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Thangka

Keywords
bow, Buddha, Buddhism, dance, Kurukulla, lotus, mandorla, skull, thangka, Tibet, Tibetan Buddhism
Provenance

?-1905
Siegfried Bing (1838-1905), method of acquisition unknown [1]

1905-1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from S. Bing in Paris, France [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer [3]

Notes:

[1] See receipt from S. Bing, 10 Rue St. Georges to Monsieur Charles Lang Freer, May 25, 1905, copy in accession file. On the receipt, Bing describes the work as "Peinture thibétaine." Siegfried Bing was an art dealer of German-French heritage, based in Paris. Respected as both an indefatigable dealer of Japanese art and a scholar, research, and pioneer of the Art Nouveau movement in France, Bing had a global clientele.

[2] Charles Lang Freer purchased this painting when traveling in Europe during the Summer of 1905. See receipt cited in note 1. See also "Summary of purchases made while abroad during the summer of 1905, from sums charged to foreign travels," from Box 113, Folder 5, Charles Lang Freer Papers, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, copy in object file.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery of Art.

Research completed September 6, 2022.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Siegfried Bing (C.L. Freer source) 1838-1905
Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919

Collection Area(s)
South Asian and Himalayan Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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