E1246- E1247: India- Clay Figurine, A Pair of Cows for cart

Ethnographic

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Identifier:

E1246- E1247

Classification Category:

8:Communication Artifacts ➞ Art/Folk Art

Marks/Labels:

There are no specific/significant marks on top of the base, and the base is so fragile and unstable that no extensive observation of the underside could be made to determine whether there are marks or labels there.

Materials:

binding agents ➔ adhesive ➔ synthetic glue
binding agents ➔ joiners ➔ metal wire ➔ armature
binding agents ➔ joiners ➔ metal tack ➔ screw
botanical ➔ wood ➔ unidentified
clay
colorant ➔ glaze
colorant ➔ paint
fabric ➔ cloth
fabric ➔ thread
fabric ➔ yarn ➔ wool
paper

Dimensions:

35.6 cm L
26.2 cm W
17.3 cm H

Provenance of Object:

The figurine was probably commissioned as a part of a set, since George Winthrop, the man who brought the figurine over to the states, also brought 18 other figurines with him. The style of the figurine and the base of the figurine (described on previous pages), strongly suggests that the figurine was probably made by one or more artisans from Krishnanagar, West Bengal, India. After acquiring the figurine sometime during the 1880s, Winthrop brought it back with him on the boat when he went home to Massachusetts in 1885. He then donated the figurine, and the other figurines he had acquired, to the Worchester Natural History Society sometimes during the late 1880s (the museum is not entirely sure about the acquisition date). The EcoTarium museum then had it on display or in storage until the 12th of August 2015 when it was deaccessioned together with the other figurines in the collection. The collection of figurines was then donated to Luther College on the 18th of September 2015, and acquisitioned the 7th of October 2015. The figurines were damaged during transportation and have mainly remained in boxes since Luther College acquisitioned them, except for when being stabilized or catalogued.

Ethnic Group:

Asian ➞ India ➞ West Bengal ➞ Krishnanagar

Production Date:

The figurine was most likely produced during the years 1874-1885, since this is the time period in which George Winthrop stayed in India. However, it makes the most sense for the figurines to have been produced during the 1880s instead of earlier since Winthrop moved around while staying in India and it would have been cumbersome to bring 19 quite fragile figurines with him wherever he went.

Use/Function:

The figurines made during the late 1800s in India were made for the purpose of showing off Indian culture to the Western world. Merchants and tourists, and other visitors, from Britain and America (and other countries too, but the sources mentions these two countries predominantly) came to India, and, as described Sria Chatterjee, wanted to bring some of what they saw and experienced culturally home with them. It therefore became a profitable business for artisans to produce life-like figurines that portrayed the different castes, and their different tasks, and then sell the figurines to the tourists. The Westerners then came home and either had a private collection of figurines to show off to friends or family, or they donated the figurines to a museum in order for the public to experience some aspects of the Indian culture in the form of the portrayal of the different castes.

The particular figurine described in this catalog was therefore likely acquired by George Winthrop to be brought back to America in order for the figurine to be displayed to the public after it was donated to the EcoTarium (then the Worchester Natural History Society) by Winthrop in the 1880s.

Source Locality:

It is known that the man who acquired the figurines, George Winthrop, was living in Calcutta at the time of acquisition. In addition, the style of the figurines is typical for the style of the Krishnanagar artisans, who worked relatively close to Calcutta. These two pieces of information makes it fairly certain that the figurines are from Calcutta, or close by Calcutta, in West Bengal, India.

Acquisition Date:

1874 – 1875

Description:

The figurine is a part of a collection of Krishnanagar clay figurines that was widely popular among Europeans and American tourists and businessmen who visited India, specifically West Bengal, in the late 1800s. This particular figurine shows a pair of cows, probably a part of a display of a man with his cart and cows.

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