1570

Lokeshvara and Tara, Bodhisattvas of Compassion

Nepalese, c. 1550 - 1600

The central deities in this painting wear skirt styles distinctive of the Malla period. Festive red makeup colors the palms of their hands and feet, and the foreheads of all the women display the red tikka powder that distinguishes married Newar women even today. The bodhisattvas sit beneath a golden torana (arch), above which rest the heads of the Five Buddha Families. The colorful checkerboard patterns that edge the torana columns are also a stylistic feature of the Malla period; the painting’s inscription provides the year in which it was made.