Page 94 - Bonhams NYC Portraits of the Masters Bronzes march 2017

3270 Arguably the most handsome portrait within the collection, the
A COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF KONCHOG YONTEN inscription explains this bronze was made, not part of a set, but as a
TIBET, 15TH/16TH CENTURY memorial to the patron’s teacher. Konchog Yonten Gyaltsen (b.15th
Inscription translated, ‘Om! “To fulfill the intention of master Konchog century) had his monastic seat in Mustang, along the Northern border
Yonten, I, Shakya Bhikshu Konchog Lodro, along with relatives made of modern-day Nepal. Dinwiddie suggests two possible identities
this statue. May the merit accumulated through this be dedicated for the student who commissioned its portrait. There are many tales
mainly to my father and mother and all the other beings under your of portrait sculptures consoling followers or relatives, which speaks
care. Good fortune!” to the tremendous agency afforded to them in Tibetan culture. The
Himalayan Art Resources item no.2334 present lot compares favorably to a related gilt bronze figure of Sonam
7 1/2 in. (19.2 cm) high Gyaltsen published in Huang, Xizhang Dansatisi Lishi Yanjiu, Beijing,
2016, p.127.
US$40,000 - 60,000
Published
西藏 十五／十六世紀 恭初雲丹銅像 Portraits of the Masters, pp.274-5, no.78.

92 | BONHAMS Published & Exhibited
Monasterios y Lamas del Tibet, p.207, no.174.

Provenance
Sotheby’s, New York, 27 March 1991, lot 113