Page 60 - Bonhams NYC Portraits of the Masters Bronzes march 2017

3248
A LARGE GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF
THE FOURTH DRUK DESI OF BHUTAN, TENZIN RABGYE
BHUTAN, LATE 17TH/18TH CENTURY
On a later brass base.
Himalayan Art Resources item no.2272
15 3/4 in. (40 cm) high

US$150,000 - 200,000

不丹 十七世紀晚期／十八世紀 銅鎏金四世不丹朱第悉丹增拉布傑像

The Drukpa Kagyu is the only order to wear this tall fan-shaped hat with a high peak that
can be seen above its rim. Comparing the portrait to inscribed paintings of the Drukpa
lineage, this figure’s facial hair, hand gestures, and the absence of attributes flowering at
his sides, singles him out as Tenzin Rabgye (1638-98), the fourth leader of the order after
it established the sovereign nation of Bhutan. Compare with thangkas of him within the
Rubin Museum of Art (HAR item nos.244 & 791) as well as murals in Bhutan (HAR item
nos.82131 & 82072)

Among the Portraits of the Masters collection this appears to be one of the truest
portraits observed from real life. It would suggest a date for the bronze not too far from
its subject’s lifetime, ending in 1698. He gazes with a magisterial countenance – stoic,
steadfast, immovable. His hands progress the Dharma over Bhutan, reflecting a lifetime
of building consensus among the kingdom’s various ruling factions. The beautifully
incised patterns with his hat and robe are large, precise, and broadly spaced, showing a
restraint largely inconsistent with Tibetan styles of the period.

In the mid 17th-century, a schism occurred within the Drukpa Kagyu over rival claims
for the legitimacy of its next incarnate leader. After his opposition secured the support
of the King of Tsang and the Karma Kagyu, Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (1594-1651)
migrated south. And while the Fifth Dalai Lama endeavored to unify Tibet, he sought to
found a new sovereign state, the kingdom of Bhutan. There he established a dual system
of government, with the Je Khenpo as the hierarch of religious affairs and the Druk Desi
as the hierarch of administrative affairs.

Shabdrung lacked an heir and instead groomed Tenzin Rabgye for office, who was the
son of Shabdrung’s first wife who had since been betrothed to a ruling family in Western
Bhutan in political alliance. Tenzin Rabgye was taught by the First, Second, and Third Druk
Desis before being enthroned in 1680. He proved a most proficient ruler, who continued
to implement Shabdrung’s vision of a unified nation, cultivating diplomacy and patronage
amongst the religious traditions within Bhutan, and a distinctive national identity.

Published
Portraits of the Masters, pp.198-9, no.49.

Published & Exhibited
Monasterios y Lamas del Tibet, p.182, no.132.

Provenance
Christie’s, New York, 3 October 1990, lot 164.

58 | BONHAMS