Indian Oil Lamp with Lakshmi Motif

Green tarnish pools in the bowl like a tiny pond at the foot of a throne.

This brass, copper and alloy oil lamp with a Lakshmi motif is from Karnataka, South India, and dates to the early 20th century. Lakshmi is a major Hindu goddess of prosperity, and her image is often placed on lamps, doors and household shrines. An arched back with a spiky border and swirling decoration rises above a round bowl with a beaded edge. A figure sits at the center of the arch. Green deposits collect inside the bowl, and the outside glows coppery gold. It is 3.5 inches wide, 3.5 deep and 5 high.

Aged in all the right places, and some of the odd ones.