Tickets
English
DonateMembershipTickets

Nagaraja (Serpent King)

ca. second quarter of the 5th century
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 236
On the Indian subcontinent, temples have been dedicated to the worship of serpents since the dawn of civilization. Both Buddhism and Hinduism adopted nagarajas and naginis (serpent kings and their consorts) as protective divinities and depicted them like human beings. This sculpture from a pair of royal serpents (1987.415.1, .2) is carved in the round. The figure stand in front of cobras, whose open hoods form canopies for their heads. They date from the early part of the Gupta period and maintain ties to the style of the late Kushan period.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Nagaraja (Serpent King)
  • Period: Gupta period
  • Date: ca. second quarter of the 5th century
  • Culture: India (Madhya Pradesh)
  • Medium: Stone
  • Dimensions: H. 38 7/8 in. (98.7 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Gift of Evelyn Kossak, The Kronos Collections, 1987
  • Object Number: 1987.415.1
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
Standing Nagaraja (Study Collection), Stone, India
Standing Nagaraja (Study Collection)
India
20th century
Nagini (Serpent Queen or Consort of Nagaraja), Stone, India (Madhya Pradesh)
Nagini (Serpent Queen or Consort of Nagaraja)
India (Madhya Pradesh)
second quarter of the 5th century
Standing Nagini (Study Collection), India
Standing Nagini (Study Collection)
India
20th century
Footed Ewer with Elephant-Headed Spout and Bird-Shaped Terminals, Copper alloy
On loan to The Met
Footed Ewer with Elephant-Headed Spout and Bird-Shaped Terminals
probably 15th century
Standing Vishnu as Keshava, Dasoja of Balligrama, Stone, India (Karnataka, probably Belur)
Standing Vishnu as Keshava
Dasoja of Balligrama
first quarter of the 12th century

Related Content

Timeline of Art History

Entries and chronologies from The Met's art encyclopedia.

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.