Figure

Dhokra craftsmen make Hindu ritual objects, rice bowls, and fish purses. They use 'dhuna' threads made from sal tree gum and mustard oil, hand pulled to a thickness of 1/16th of an inch, the depth required for the thickness of the brass which will replace the 'dhuna' in the casting process. Although classic Sanskrit-based brass casting techniques stipulate that ritual objects should be solid caste, this does not apply to folk traditions and the hollow casting predominates.

communal worship

Lakshmi is goddess of fortune and giver of wealth, wife of Vishnu and mother of Kama, god of love. She is born either from the ocean, holding a lotus, or was floating on the lotus at the time of creation. The owl is her vehicle.

Roughly burnished brass representation of a woman seated on back of owl. Around her body is a ring of brass coils made separately and attached to her back. Her crown is made of coils of brass and her dominant features, brow, eyes, ears, nose, lips, are determined by the thickness and malleability of the brass. Breasts are twisted circles of brass. Owl has sharp angular wings and tail. It is decorated around its body with loops of brass ridges. The woman has been glued at waist to owl.