Hamsa bird, 1800-1900
Bequeathed to the museum, this hamsa bird (also known as hintha) is from Burma. The hamsa is associated with the swan or goose.
The hamsa is deemed sacred in Buddhism, as a symbol of wisdom and is associated with images of the Shakyamuni Buddha. In Hinduism, hamsa are the vahana (mount) of the deities Brahma, Gayatri, Saraswati, and Vishvakarma.
