Goose (Hamsa) with Floral Tail

Goose (Hamsa) with Floral Tail

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This panel was the interior base molding of a Buddhist temple. This goose (hamsa) was part of a large group that ran along the base of the wall surmounted by lozenges withpearls (see 30.32.10). The hamsa is associated with the heavens and thus metaphorically located the sacred space of this temple within a celestial realm.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Goose (Hamsa) with Floral TailGoose (Hamsa) with Floral TailGoose (Hamsa) with Floral TailGoose (Hamsa) with Floral TailGoose (Hamsa) with Floral Tail

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.