Pendant with Four-armed Green Vishnu on a lotus with Nagas

1600s or 1700s

Pendant with Four-armed Green Vishnu on a lotus with Nagas, 1600s or 1700s. Nepal, Kathmandu Valley. Gold set with precious and semiprecious stones; overall: 7.2 x 5.8 cm (2 13/16 x 2 5/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade 1915.340 Vishnu, made of emeralds, holds his typical emblems, each made of gold: a discus in his upper right hand, the club in his upper left, and a lotus in his lower right hand. He sits cross-legged on a lotus pedestal made of spinels, nestled on the back of his mount, Garuda, shown with a crystal face, spinel torso, and turquoise wings. The intertwined bodies of nagas (serpent deities) form the bottom of this pendant; each naga holds a pearl in offering; their faces are carved from lapis lazuli. An eleven-headed serpent hood rears over the entire ensemble. In Nepal and South India, the Hindu god Vishnu can be shown as either blue or green.