Page 95 - Sotheby's Arts of Asia Paris, June 16, 2022

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PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF ABOLALA SOUDAVAR 或宋 石雕菩薩首像
A MONUMENTAL STONE HEAD OF A 來源 :
BODDHISATTVA Vercruysse 博士自1958年入藏 ，布魯塞爾（傳）
POSSIBLY SONG DYNASTY Jacques Barrère藝廊，巴黎，得自2010年巴黎雙年展
72 x 38 cm, 28⅜ by 15 in.

PROVENANCE
Previously in the collection of Dr Vercruysse, Brussels, since
1958, by repute.
Gallery Jacques Barrère, Paris, acquired at the Paris Biennale
in 2010.
Rare tête monumentale de Bodhisattva en pierre,
probablement dynastie Song

80 000-120 000 €

This massive stone head of the Buddha is highly idiosyncratic had become rarer and their styles are less well studied. A
in material and iconography and therefore not easy stone head of Avalokitesvara in the Musée Guimet, Paris
to attribute to a firm date or place. It is difficult to find (MG 26627), (fig. 1), which on account of its crown can be
comparisons of a head having the ushnisha, the enlarged attributed to the Liao or Song dynasty, shows a similarly
upper part of the Buddha’s head, which symbolizes great broad face with sharp features, accentuated by single and
wisdom, depicted as a continuous, pointed extension of double outlines, as well as related, exaggerated ear lobes (its
the skull as seen here, rather than as a distinct, domed nose, which is less powerful, seems to be restored). A dating
protuberance at the top of the cranium. Also unusual is the to a similar period is conceivable, although known Buddha
drop-shaped representation of coils of hair on this head, even heads from this time also tend to be different.
though locks on Buddhist sculptures are generally rendered Another related example, with a long elongated head and
in a highly stylized way. Finally, the stone itself is of a quality curly hairs but without mention of provenance or dating is
rarely seen. Stylistically, the head thus does not fit well into illustrated in Thousands of years of Buddha carving history,
the known canon of Tang (618-907) and earlier Chinese Taiwan, pl. 216 and 217, from Mr Zhe-Jing Chen’s Collection.
Buddhist sculpture.

After the Tang, in the Five Dynasties (907-960), the Liao
(907-1125), the Song (960-1279), the Jin (1115-1234) and
the Yuan (1271-1368) periods, Buddhist sculptures in stone

Fig. 1 © Musée Guimet, Paris (MG26627)
92 SOTHEBY’S COMPLETE CATALOGUING AVAILABLE AT SOTHEBYS.COM/PF2207