Architectural Fragment: Bird

In museum work, the legacies of colonialism can permanently scar artifacts with missing or altered information. This bird carving–measuring 26 cm in height, 26 cm in width, and weighing approximately 3 kg–is one such piece. As the provenance of this architectural fragment is completely unknown, it was broadly catalogued as “bird,” due to lack of information. To explore the history behind this piece, we look to the birds of Hindu and Buddhist mythology.

The scaled pattern along the bird’s neck and the detailing around its eye suggests that the bird fragment could be a peacock. As the peacock is described as “the [vahana, or, divine vehicle and companion] of Muruga or Subrahmaniah, the supreme god of the Dravidians of Tamil Nadu”, this piece could potentially come from Tamil Nadu. The peacock is also a vehicle of the goddess Saraswati. Temples of Saraswati exist throughout India and Indonesia, which makes this artifact’s origins less clear. Another possibility is that this bird isn’t a peacock at all. Its small frame and curved beak suggests that it could be a parrot, and the parrot is a vahana of the goddess Meenakshi of Tamil Nadu. As Hindu stories and customs differ from region to region, it is difficult or impossible to derive the true meaning of this bird with no information on its origins.

Without knowing the origins of this bird carving, we cannot know its true identity and symbolism. This bird could originate from a temple or temple cart anywhere in India or Indonesia. This bird has been permanently marked by the forces of colonialism, which slowly chips away at the rich narratives and stories that define it.

1Fuller, C. J. “The Divine Couple’s Relationship in a South Indian Temple: Mīnākṣī and Sundareśvara at Madurai.” History of Religions 19, no. 4 (1980): 321–48. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1062576.

2Kadgaonkar, Shivendra B. “THE PEACOCK IN ANCIENT INDIAN ART AND LITERATURE.” Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute 53 (1993): 95–115. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42936434.

3Kadgaonkar, Shivendra B. "The role of animals and birds in ancient Indian art and culture." Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute 68 (2008): 163-165.

4Nair, P. Thankappan. “The Peacock Cult in Asia.” Asian Folklore Studies 33, no. 2 (1974): 93–170. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177550.

5Rathore, Nikita. "Representation and Significance of Animals and Birds in Temple Art: A Case Study of Paramara Temples." Art of the Orient 11 (2022): 127-139.