Standing Male and Female Figures Combined

     Sokkanathanputtur, Srivilliputtur Taluk, Ramnad District. Height 45cm. About 15th century AD.

     Kesa is leaning towards right side of male head, left of female. No ear-rings, necklaces or sacred thread are found. Male right arm with raised sword (end broken) combined with female left hanging at side; Male arm with hand in ahuya varada pose, combined with female right holding water-lily. Girdle in three decorated strips; cloth short on both sides.

     It has been suggested that this figure probably represents a Raja who was killed in battle inseparably combined with his wife after she committed sati.

Somaskanda

     Nidur, Mayavaram Taluk, Tanjore District. Height of Siva 50cm. of Paravti  44 cm. of Subrahmanya 29 cm. About 10th century AD.   
     
     Siva : Axe, antelope; abhaya, ahuya-varada.
     Parvati : Kataka, varada.
     Subrahmanya : kataka, fruit.
   
   The treatment of this image, especially the necklaces and faces, clearly mark it as of Chola type, in spite of the absence of the projecting elbow ornaments. The usual snake and flower are present on right and left respectively of the jewel in Siva's head-dress, which lacks the usual crescent. The flower is probably a Datura. The face and tail of the antelope are facing towards Siva. Subrahmanya is shown as standing erect and wears a karanda-makuta and patra-kundalas.

Somaskanda

     Tiruvelangadu, Tiruttani Taluk, Chittoor District (formerly). Height of Siva 28cm. Parvati 23cm. Subrahmanya. The piece where Subrahmanya is expected to be placed is missing. About 9th century AD.

    Siva: axe, antelope; skull-bowl, trident.
    Parvati: lotus bud, ahuya-varada. Rectangular stand.

    This unusual and rather striking image is the smallest Somaskanda in the collection. Siva's headdress bears on the right side the crescent at the top and the skull at the bottom with snakes in between, and on the left side snakes with a large Datura flower near the bottom, all shown in the prabhavali. Siva wears a makara-kundala in his right ear and a deeply cylindrical patra-kundala in his left. Parvati has patra-kundalas of normal form in both ears. The right hind leg of the antelope is held between the first two fingers of Siva's left hand. Its face and head are towards him. The armlets of both figures are somewhat cobra-like in form. A large ornament hangs down the middle of Siva's back with three locks of long hair on either side of it, curled round at their ends as if to suggest the tails of snakes. Parvati's hair falls in seven ringlets, of which the two outermost on each side are twisted into the shoulder ornaments. The girdles of both figures have ornamental bows on both sides. At the front of the stand between the two figures are two circular depressions evidently intended to receive Subramanya's feet, but the figure is missing. But for this piece of evidence the figure would have had to be regarded as Umasahita.