Panchika and Hariti
On display
Seated like a Roman tutelary couple, the Indian wealth deity Panchika holds a purse and staff (now broken), while his consort Hariti holds a cornucopia. The latter feature suggests that this pair of protective deities may otherwise be Kubera and Ardochsho, Indian and Iranian deities of prosperity.
Details
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Title
Panchika and Hariti
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Associated place
Gandhara (place of creation)Charsadda district (possible) (possible place of creation) -
Date
3rd - 4th century AD (AD 201 - 400)
Kushan Period (AD 50 - 600) -
Material and technique
grey schist
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Material index
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Technique index
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Object type
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Dimensions
18 x 17 x 4.5 cm max. (height x width x depth) -
No. of items
1
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Credit line
Presented by Major P. C. Hailey, 1962.
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Museum location
Ground floor | Gallery 12 | India to AD 600 -
Museum department
Eastern Art
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Accession no.
EA1962.42
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Catalogue text
In this attractive sculpture, Pāncika and Hārītī are seated together in a pose probably imitative of Roman tutelary couples. They are, in fact, Indian folk gods, he now dressed in a Kusāna tunic but with a Greek style cloak thrown over his shoulders, while Hārītī’s dress is certainly non-Indian. Her crown in particular suggests a western origin. The cornucopia, with an animal’s head at the base suggesting a rhyton [see EA1963.28], is quite non-Indian. Her crown in particular suggests a western origin. In fact, to pious Buddhists and caste Hindus alike, animal horn would have been anathema but they probably had no idea of the origin of the horn of plenty.
Pāñcika (sometimes conflated with Kubera) is associated with wealth. He holds a purse (part of his staff is missing) and coins piled up below the throne. Hārītī, who is worshipped for the protection of children [see EA1971.36] is here depicted as a goddess of plenty.In: Harle, J. C., and Andrew Topsfield, Indian Art in the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 1987)
Further reading
Harle, J. C., and Andrew Topsfield, Indian Art in the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 1987), no. 18 on p. 15, pp. 5 & 11, illus. p. 15
Jongeward, David, Buddhist Art of Gandhara in the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2019), no. 136 on p. 167
