Indian Temple Fragment Depicting Feline

Wide-eyed face with an open mouth looks straight out of a hollow trough.

This temple fragment depicting feline is Jain, from Bhojpur, Kutch District, India, and dates to the mid 19th century. It is carved & painted stone. Jainism teaches that the universe has no beginning or end, and that nothing is created or destroyed as living souls and non-living things change form over time. Beast is shown head-on, with round staring eyes, a snarling open mouth and a ridged mane. It lies along a narrow base with a channel running between its forelegs, in pale stone with pinkish tones. It is 19 inches wide, 7 deep and 19.5 high.

Alarmed, or perhaps simply expressive from birth.