Page 44 - March 23 2022 Boinghams NYC Indian and Himalayan Art

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A RARE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF BUDDHA
TIBET, 15TH CENTURY
6 in. (15.2 cm.) high
$30,000-50,000

PROVENANCE:
Private collection, Niigata, Japan, 1970s, by repute.
LITERATURE:
Himalayan Art Resources, item no. 24741.

This richly-gilt bronze figure of Buddha, supported on a stepped throne
and backed by a flaming aureole, both with diminutive images of attendant
figures, displays an unidentified iconographic program, but displays all of the
hallmarks of fifteenth-century Central Tibetan metalwork, including powerful
modeling of the central figure, heavy gilding, and fine incised detailing.
The Buddha sits proudly on an upturned lotus base with his legs crossed
in vajrasana and his hands in bhumisparshamudra, recalling the moment
the Buddha Shakyamuni defeated the temptations of Mara and attained
enlightenment at the site of Bodh Gaya. He is cloaked in a diaphanous
sanghati with hems incised with a scrolling foliate pattern and which reveals
his softly modeled form beneath. The head is supported on a short neck
which also possibly references the main image of Buddha at Bodh Gaya,
which is depicted with a short neck. His face is full in the cheek and chin, with
sinuously-arched eyelids and brows centered by a raised urna and flanked by
the pendulous earlobes of a prince. The hair is depicted in tight curls over the
ushnisha, which is topped by a gilt-knot.
The Buddha is backed by an integral flaming aureole which rises from vases at
either corner. At the top of the aureole is a diminutive image of what appears
to be a rare form of Shadakshari Lokeshvara, a form of the bodhisattva,
Avalokiteshvara. Further down, flanking the Buddha at his shoulders, are
further images of Vajrapani at proper right and Green Tara at proper left. The
lotus base on which the central figure sits has two attached lotus bases at
either side with apertures on top that likely would have supported additional,
separately cast figures. All are supported on a two-tiered throne, with the top
tier supported by foliate columns similar to those supporting the tiers of the
famous stepped stupas of Densatil monastery. At the center of the throne
within an arched niche is a dancing female figure, possibly representing a
musician. To either side of her are further images of a seated siddha-like figure
at proper right and a dancing dakini at proper left, and a lion can be found at
each side of the throne.
While the iconography remains an enigma, the composition of the throne,
the rich gilding, and form of the central Buddha are reminiscent of some of
the great Tibetan metal casting monuments of the fifteenth century, such as
Densatil, and it is possible this small work was a personal altar made in the
(another view)
the same milieu.

西藏 十五世紀 鎏金銅佛坐像
來源:
私人珍藏, 新潟市, 日本, 1970年代 (傳)
出版:
“喜馬拉雅藝術資源” (Himalayan Art Resources), 編號24741

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