Bronze statue - Garuda

Central or Northern India, early 20th century. Height approx. 138 mm.

This finely cast and carefully finished bronze statue depicts Garuda. Garuda (in Sanskrit: Garuḍa, in Pāli: Garuḷa, and in Vedic Sanskrit: Garuḷa) is a mythical creature from Hindu and Buddhist mythology. He is the mount (vahana) of the god Vishnu and a legendary sun bird, whose origin and life are described in the Mahabharata. He is also known by the names Tarkshya and Vainateya.

Garuda is often portrayed in his zoomorphic form—as a large bird with massive wings, sharp talons, large eyes, and a beak full of sharp teeth—or in an anthropomorphic form, with human features combined with wings and hawk-like characteristics. Garuda is the son of Kashyapa and Vinata and the younger brother of Aruna.

His mythical home lies in the forest at the foot of Mount Meru, in the region of Himaphan. He is regarded as the king of birds (Khagesvara). Garuda is also described with epithets such as “the one with beautiful feathers” (Suparna), “radiant” (Sitanatha), “lord of the sky” (Gaganeswara), “golden-bodied” (Suvarnakaya), and “enemy of serpents” (Nagantaka). His primary adversaries are the serpent-like Nagas, and traditional art often depicts Garuda engaged in combat with them. Garuda is the national emblem of both Indonesia and Thailand.