Figure of Shiva Nataraja
- Audio guide stop: 602
- Gallery: Room 33
- Culture: Chola
- Made in: Tamil Nadu
- Date: 930-940 (circa; ?); 800 (?)
- Object type: figure
- Materials: bronze
- Museum number: 1969,1216.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is a figure of Śiva Natarāja, known as the "Lord of Cosmic Dance." This four-armed bronze figure was cast in a copper alloy during the Chola period in Tamil Nadu.
Look closely at the god's dynamic form: in his upper right hand, he holds a drum, in his left a blazing flame. His right foot is lifted, offering salvation, while his left crushes a dwarfish figure symbolizing ignorance. Notice the crescent moon on his head—this represents time. His expressive earrings and graceful posture reflect Śiva’s androgynous nature.
This image has deep meaning. As one hand raises in protection, the other holds the fire of destruction, showing Śiva’s balance of cosmic forces.
Scholars suggest this is one of the earliest known images of Natarāja, created around AD 800. Over centuries, it has become an iconic representation of Hindu devotion and artistry.
See it in person
Figure of Shiva Nataraja is on display in Room 33 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 602, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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