ashtadhatu

File:DSC09822 Shri Shakti Devi temple Chamba.jpg of the 8th century, Himachal Pradesh]]{{Short description|Alloy of eight metals in Hindu and Jain iconography}}

Ashtadhatu ({{Langx|sa|अष्टधातु|lit=eight metals|translit=Aṣṭadhātu}}), also called octo-alloy, is an alloy comprising the eight metals of gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, tin, iron, and mercury,[https://books.google.com/books?id=tG0fnF0VRk0C&dq=Ashtadhatu&pg=PA163 Social, Cultural, and Economic History of Himachal Pradesh]. Manjit Singh Ahluwalia. Indus Publishing. 1998 p. 163.{{Cite book |last=Stutley |first=Margaret |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vQWQDwAAQBAJ&dq=a%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%ADadh%C4%81tu&pg=PT69 |title=The Illustrated Dictionary of Hindu Iconography |date=2019-04-09 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-62425-4 |pages=69 |language=en}} often used for casting metallic idols for Jain and Hindu temples in India.

The composition is laid down in the Shilpa Shastras, a collection of ancient texts that describe arts, crafts, and their design rules, principles and standards. Ashtadhatu is used because it is considered sattivik (virtuous or pure) in Hinduism, and does not decay, and it is also restricted to the production of images for the deities Kubera, Vishnu, Krishna, Rama, Kartikeya, and the goddesses Durga and Lakshmi.{{Citation needed|date=March 2023}}

Its traditional composition, all eight metals are in equal proportion (12.5% each).{{Citation needed|date=March 2023}}File:Ashtadhatu Shivlingam.jpg made by the Dhumra Gems company. It consists of all eight metals in equal proportion: gold, silver, copper, mercury, iron, lead, zinc, and tin.]]