Indian Wood Temple Frame

A zigzag crown, a pinwheel flower and a pointed window below.

This carved teak temple frame is from Karnataka, South India, and dates to the late 19th or early 20th century. It is carved teak wood. Hindu household and temple shrines commonly hold images of deities, and the carved surround is meant to honor the presence of the sacred within it. Tall dark panel with a sawtooth top edge and a rectangular box carved with an eight-petal star. Beneath it, layered arches lead to a small cusped opening, with a few pale paint flecks near the base. It is 5.25 inches wide, 0.75 deep and 8.5 high.

A star above the door, as any good house should have.