Page 112 - Christie's Inidian and HImalayan Works of Art, March 2019
P. 112
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE ASIAN COLLECTION
675
A SMALL ZITAN FIGURE OF ARHAT BAKULA elder, Bakula, is considered one of the direct disciples
TIBET, 17TH-18TH CENTURY of the historical buddha Shakyamuni who swiftly
3æ in. (9.5 cm.) high achieved enlightenment and, therefore serves as
example to devotees. He is depicted here according
$5,000-7,000
to standard iconography: as an ordained monk,
holding a mongoose. He is propitiated for his ability to
PROVENANCE bestow basic material needs to those who have taken
Acquired in the Hong Kong art market, 1990s,
by repute refuge. This small sculpture is likely to have been one
of a larger set of arhats.
The present sculpture bears a carefully-carved
Himalayan Art Resources (himalayanart.org),
inscription upon the verso of its rich zitan base,
item no. 24463.
reading “Homage to the arhat Bakula!” The arhat or
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