Object Status:
Unlocated
Accession Date:
June 13, 1817
Primary Source Reference:
Peale Museum Accessions Book, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, p. 86-87
Notes:
Designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the Elephanta Caves are a collection of cave temples with sculptures predominantly dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva on Elephanta Island in Mumbai Harbour, India. With a few exceptions, much of the artwork is defaced and damaged, likely by souvenir-hunters such as the donor. The sculpture pictured here depicts Shiva slaying Andhaka.
The donor was probably Capt. R. Babcock, owner and captain of the merchant ship Eliza (port of Calcutta), who died in Bombay in 1825 at the age of 51. The Oriental Herald and Journal of General Literature, 6 (1825): 405; Reports and Papers on the Impolicy of Employing Indian Built Ships in the Trade of the East-India Company (London, 1809), p. 240
