Musée des Arts Asiatiques — Guimet, Paris, France/© RMN–Grand Palais/Art Resource, NYMother and Child Mothers and their children have been at the core of social life everywhere and a prominent theme of many artistic traditions. This lovely statue comes from the Sunga dynasty, which flourished in northeastern India from about 185 to 73 B.C.E., after the collapse of the Mauryan Empire.