Ratih and Kala Rau

Ratih swallowed by Kala Rau is a very common carving motive, but I actually own three of them. Scroll down to see the others. The specimen above comes from the collection of the late Paul de Bont, who was a well-known collector of Indonesian art and author of specialist books.
I myself have the carving from Sipke, another Dutch collector who maintains a very good researched website on Indonesian art.

The story goes that the demon Kala Rau wanted to attack the celestial abode of Vishnu to take revenge for his rejection by Devi Ratih. Vishnu beheaded Kala Rau, but his head remained alive as he had already drunk the immortality potion Amrita. Since then, Kala Rau has been trying to devour the moon goddess Ratih, but due to his lack of a body, he will never fully succeed. This is where the idea of a recurring lunar eclipse comes from.

 measurements: 27x11x6,5 cm
weight: 530 gr  

In this less frequently seen artistic interpretation, Ratih is next to Kala Rau instead of her standing in his mouth. Kala Rau's tongue stretches out to reach her.

 measurements: 33,5x18,5x13 cm
weight: 2080 gr

The bookend version was my first Ratih statue. It is very well made. Every single part and corner done very accurate and polished to the max. Touching the figurine you may think it's out of plastic, so smooth.