Mark Rasmussen
International Director
Lot 611
A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF BUDDHA VAJRASANA NEPAL, EARLY MALLA PERIOD, 13TH CENTURY
23 September 2020, 15:00 EDT
New YorkSold for US$100,075 inc. premium
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A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF BUDDHA VAJRASANA
NEPAL, EARLY MALLA PERIOD, 13TH CENTURY
Himalayan Art Resources item no.16803
6 5/8 in. (16.8 cm) high
Himalayan Art Resources item no.16803
6 5/8 in. (16.8 cm) high
Footnotes
尼泊爾 馬拉王朝早期 十三世紀 銅鎏金金剛座佛陀像
This flawless gilt bronze recalls the moment of Shakyamuni's enlightenment. His gaze transfixed in meditation, he extends his right index finger down to beseech the Earth's testimony to his enlightenment. The small vajra placed before his ankles makes mnemonic reference to Shakyamuni's 'vajra seat' (vajrasana): the very site of his accomplishment, which is enshrined at the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, Northeastern India.
Beautifully modeled and finely chased, the bronze is gilded with a warm hue over a copper-rich brown surface. It is a classic example of the exceptional quality produced by Newari master craftsmen from Nepal in the Early Malla Period (13th-15th century). The Newars adapted the basic iconography of Northeastern Indian Buddha images, depicting the Buddha with a broader, more nourished physique, elaborating on the fishtail pleat of Buddha's robe and placing higher over his left shoulder, and adding a decorative hem over the left bicep. (This can be gleaned from contrasting 10th-century Northeastern Indian bronzes in Roy, Eastern Indian Bronzes, New Delhi, 1986, nos.217-21 with Newari bronzes in Pal, Desire and Devotion, Baltimore, 2001, pp.284-5, no.163, and sold at Bonhams, New York, 18 September 2013, lot 8.)
Other Newari features presented by this bronze are the Buddha's delightfully modeled toes and the 'rice-grain' pattern incised along the detailed hems. The construction of the sculpture's base—made by joining separately cast top and bottom rows of lotus petals at a deeply recessed waist—is another enduring feature of Nepalese bronzes. Renown throughout the Buddhist world, Newari masters of the Early Malla Period produced bronzes for both domestic and foreign patrons, as showcased by similar examples published in von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculpture in Tibet, Vol.I, Hong Kong, 2001, pp.522-523, no.170c & Vol. II, pp.962-3, no.231C). Though of quaint scale, this bronze stands as a perfect testament to why the works of Newari master craftsmen are so revered for their quality and character.
Provenance
Private Swiss Collection since 2007