Page 79 - 2020 September 23 Himalyan and Southeast Asian Works of Art Bonhams

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A TERRACOTTA RELIEF OF SOMA (CHANDRA),
A WOOD FIGURE OF BUDDHA
MYANMAR, PAGAN PERIOD, 12TH/13TH CENTURY THE MOON GOD
With remains of red and gilt lacquer UTTAR PRADESH, GUPTA PERIOD, 6TH CENTURY
64 3/4 in. (164.5 cm) high Inscribed with two letters of late Brahmi (Gupta) script, “soma”,
identifying the subject.
10 in. (25.5 cm) high
$40,000 - 60,000
$6,000 - 8,000
緬甸 蒲甘王朝 十二/十三世紀 佛陀木像

This rare and life-size wood sculpture of Buddha depicts him standing 北方邦 笈多王朝 六世紀 陶質月神像
with his left hand raised before his chest, holding the hem of his robe
and his right hand down by his hip displaying the gesture of charity G. Bhattacharya dedicated an article to this terracotta relief, which
(varada mudra). The temple city of Pagan blossomed between the he proposes is the earliest known image of the Hindu moon god,
11th and 13th centuries and is home to the densest concentration of Soma (also known as Chandra). The pot-bellied deity is shown alert
Buddhist monuments in the world. Pagan’s emblematic wood standing and attentive, holding a rosary and a water jug. His flexed toes, well-
buddhas are often carved with regalia, while the present example nourished physique, and elaborate curls are idiomatic of Gupta-period
almost certainly had an affixed crown and necklace, probably of gilded sculpture in terracotta. Compare other panels with differing subjects in
copper. Compare a crowned example with similar pose, physique, the Brooklyn Museum of Art (73.124 & 1990.226).
broad physiognomy, and lotus base in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
New York (1992.382). Published
Gouriswar Bhattacharya, “Soma - The Hindu Moon God”, in
Provenance Orientations, October 1993, No.10, p.84, fig.1.
Private West Coast Collection, early 1980s
Private US Collection Provenance
Dr. and Mrs. J. LeRoy Davidson, Los Angeles
Sotheby’s, New York, 28 October 1991, lot 302

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