Crocodile – Phillips Antiques

Set of Makara Brackets

Gujarat (Western India)

Wood with polychrome

An unusual and impressive set of carved makara brackets (architectural struts) probably originally from the upper pavilion of a mansion or temple. Their open mouths reveal rows of prominent teeth, the upper jaw is formed as a short upturned trunk. The necks have a linked chain, the lower body is encompassed by scales resembling a fish and have an upturned tail.

The Makara is a mythical aquatic creature that is said to combine the body of a crocodile with the head of a lion and the trunk of an elephant. One of India’s most ancient symbols, harking back more than two thousand years to a time when the natural world was seen as both symbol and reality, and fantastic creatures were invented to express the complexity of nature. The Makara is considered auspicious and purifying by Hindus and related to fertility. He is the vehicle (vahana) of Varuna, god of the waters of heaven and earth, and the emblem of Kama, the god of love.

Individual Sizes (cms): 155(H) x 38(W) x 21(D)
Individual Sizes (inches): 61(H) x 15(W) x 8.5(D)

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Crocodile Puppet

Andhra Pradesh (South India)

Framed Leather Shadow Puppet

In Andhra Pradesh the Tholu Bomalatta tradition of travelling shadow puppet theatre typically enacts the voluminous epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. Made from goat, cow or buffalo skin, the Andhra Pradesh puppets are sometimes more than five feet high. They are translucent, stained in vegetable dyes and are extremely stylised in facial garment rendering. Viewed as shadows from behind a lamp-lit cloth screen, the puppets are manipulated with the help of bamboo sticks at certain points, usually at the joints on the shoulders, knees, elbows and head. The highly animated performance, along with the drum beat and loud narration of stories is highly effective in mesmerising the spectators transporting them into another world.

Size (cms): 81.3(H) x 160(W)
Size (inches): 32(H) x 63(W)

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