One of our nearby towns has an ethnic shop which deals in a mixture of modern repro and authentic original pieces. In recent years, the former category, perhaps inevitably, has tended to gain ground relative to the latter. I bought this bronze of the goddess Saraswati from them during their earlier period, but in my inexperienced condition - this being also my early period - I assumed, without actually asking, that it was an original, not a repro clone.

The dabbler in antiques and objets d’art has to be prepared for periodic humiliations. Not so long after this purchase I acquired a bronze buddha, which I was assured was antique, and mention was made of a dealer who had suggested sending it up to London for valuation, the luxurious condition of the mansion from which it had been purchased etc. So I paid £150 for it and was delighted. Not long afterwards, I made the acquaintance of Roger. At some point I took it proudly in for an expert identification, having discovered his unerring eye and encyclopaedic knowledge. He had a quick look underneath. ‘Modern, 20 or 30 quid (£)’, he said, ‘How much did you pay for it?’ I died inside and told him. Roger’s prices ( and therefore valuations) tend often to be absurdly low, but even taking that into account, I’d been had, fair and square. It was not, either, to be the last time.

The situation facing the collector is this: he who hesitates is lost OR fools rush in where angels fear to tread. As ever, folk wisdom gets it right. In other words, there is a dilemma. If you see something of exceptional value, and if you want it and can afford it, you’d better buy it - because if you don’t, the very fact that you’ve looked at it long and lovingly imprints itself on the artefact in question, so that by the time you return for it the following week or even day, having belatedly made up your mind, it’s been sold. On the other hand, let your (in this case my) Taurean character loose and you will put your head down and charge at your peril. There’s only one solution: unerring intuition. You have to get it right, or pay the penalty. The moral of this cautionary tale is: Now I’m not sure if my Saraswati really IS antique - not modern, I’m sure, but maybe a repro with some age, rather than an original? My intuition for age doesn’t operate very well with bronze. But older or younger, in my eyes she’s got that certain something. 

Again, exceptionally, I did a little research. This is wikipedia on Saraswati:

She is shown to hold the following in her hands:

• A book, which is the sacred Vedas, representing the universal, divine, eternal, and true knowledge as well as her perfection of the sciences and the scriptures.
• A mala of crystals, representing the power of meditation and spirituality.
• A pot of sacred water, representing creative and purificatory powers.
• The veena, a musical instrument that represents her perfection of all arts and sciences. Saraswati is also associated with anurāga, the love for and rhythm of music which represents all emotions and feelings expressed in speech or music. It is believed that children born with that name will prove to be very lucky in their studies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saraswati

The Nepalese version, apparently, needs two hands for the instrument, thus not having one left for the water-pot. Otherwise, she corresponds to the above schema. To cut a long story short: she’s the (Hindu) patron saint of artists.

Here she is:

saraswati-nepal.jpg  (try her at 200% zoom)