Page 360 - Chinese Art Auction April 25, 2020 2020 Galerie Zacke

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A lIFe-sIZed TeRRAcOTTA heAd OF VAJRAPANI
IN The FORM OF heRAcles, gANdhARA

Ancient region of Gandhara, 4th-5th century. Powerfully modeled with
a stern facial expression, framed by dense facial hair arranged into
long voluminous curls, with a billowing moustache and beard, and
wavy hair tied into a bun on the side. The furrowed brow, indications
of age, and piercing gaze reflect a taste for naturalism.

Provenance: Arthur Huc (1854-1932).
Marcel Huc, inherited from the above.
Thence by descent within the same family.
In 1954, L. Magniette, bailiff of the court
in Toulouse (Huissier), was ordered to
compile a complete inventory of the
collection inherited by Marcel Huc from
his father, Arthur Huc, the so-called Arthur Huc (1854-1932)
“Inventaire Huc”. The present lot is listed
in this inventory as follows: “Serie de vingt deux têtes en terre-cuite.
GANDHARA” (series of twenty-two terracotta heads. GANDHARA). A
copy of the inventory list and cover page are accompanying this lot.
Arthur Huc was the chief editor of La Dépêche du Midi, at the time the
leading newspaper in Toulouse, France. He was also an accomplished
art critic and early patron of several artists, including Henri de Toulouse-
Lautrec. At the same time, Arthur Huc was a keen collector of Asian art,
a passion that he inherited from his legendary ancestor Évariste régis
Huc, also known as the Abbé Huc (1813-1860), a French Catholic priest
and traveler who became famous for his accounts of Qing-era China,
Mongolia and especially the then-almost-unknown Tibet in his book
“remembrances of a Journey in Tartary, Tibet, and China”.
condition: Excellent, almost unique condition, fully consistent with the
age of the sculpture, some firing flaws and insignificant material loss to
some exposed areas, hardly noticeable due to a light-
colored varnish coating which was applied long time
ago.
scientific Analysis Report: A Thermoluminescence
sample analysis has been conducted by Oxford Au-
thentication, TL test no. N116n9, dated 18 October
2016, and is consistent with the suggested period of
manufacture, a copy of the thermoluminescence analy-
sis report accompanies this lot (the original is lost).
Weight: 10.4 kg in total
Dimensions: Height 34 cm (the head) and 47 cm (incl. base)
This large terracotta head is an extremely rare legacy of the ancient
kingdom of Gandhara, encapsulating the rich cultural interplay and hybrid
art styles derived from Hellenistic and Indian influences. It depicts the
bodhisattva Vajrapani, the protector of Buddhism, represented with the
iconography of the Greek god Hercules, who was widely venerated as a
hero and savior in western Asia during the early centuries of the present
era. As a great champion, yet one who nevertheless understood the human
condition, Hercules was easily assimilated into Mahayana Buddhism. Like
other Gandharan bodhisattvas, he is depicted as an earthly prince with his
aristocratic bearing and posture. However, his heavily moustached face
belongs to the Indian world, while the naturalistic face is reminiscent of Mounted on an associated base. (2)
Greco-roman sculpture.
Auction result comparison: Compare with a closely related terracotta statue
The kingdom of Gandhara lasted from 530 BC to 1021 AD, when its last king of Vajrapani in the form of Hercules at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in Curiosity V,
was murdered by his own troops. It stretched across parts of present-day 02 April 2019, lot 3105, bought in at an estimate of HKD $1.5 million to HKD
Afghanistan and Pakistan. Gandhara is noted for its distinctive style in $1.8 million
Buddhist art, which developed out of a merger of Greek, Syrian, Persian
and Indian artistic influence. Gandharan style flourished and achieved its 赤陶金剛手菩薩頭像，以海克力斯形象出現，健陀羅
peak during the Kushan period, from the 1st to the 5th century. In the first 健陀羅，四至五世紀，嚴厲的表情，濃密的波浪長髮捲曲在頭上結成髻，鬍鬚濃密。
century AD, Gandhara was the birthplace of some of the earliest Buddhist 皺著眉頭，嚴厲的目光，顯示出自然主義的品味。
images.
來源：此像源自法國阿瑟∙胡克（1854-1932）收藏。馬爾塞∙胡克繼承，家族保
The use of hard-fired ceramic instead of stone such as schist was popular 存。1954年1954年，圖盧茲法院的法警L. Magniette受命對馬爾塞∙胡克從其父親阿
瑟∙胡克（即所謂的“ Inventaire Huc”）繼承的藏品進行完整的清點。藏品清單中
during the later Gandharan period from the 4th to the 6th centuries C.E. 可見現有拍品。隨附清單拷貝。阿瑟∙胡克先生曾是圖盧斯市《快訊》極受歡迎的時
Fired clay was expensive in the area, because the wood needed for the 政記者，直至1932年去世，他還是一個著名的藝術評論家。同時，他也開始收藏亞
firing process was scarce. Therefore, such an expensive sculpture would 洲藝術。其收藏可追溯到額法李斯特∙雷吉斯∙胡克，又名阿貝∙胡克（1813-1860，中
have been a highly meritorious Buddhist offering. Only very few terracotta 文名古伯察Évariste Regis Huc），一個法國傳教士，他在蒙古、西藏及中國的游記
statues from this period and size have ever been recorded. 《鞑靼西藏旅行记》使他成名。
品相：極佳的獨一無二的品相，符合雕像的年代，一些燒製缺陷和一些裸露區域的材
料缺損，這是由於很久以前使用的淺色清漆塗層，但不明顯。
隨附牛津熱釋光測試檢測證書拷貝
lITeRATuRe cOMPARIsON 重量：縂10.4公斤
Compare with a terracotta head of Dionysos (The 尺寸：頭像高 34厘米，含底座47厘米
文獻比較：一件赤陶狄俄倪索斯頭像，四至五世紀，與此拍品非常相似，可見紐約
God of Wine and Divine Intoxication), 4th–5th Metropolitan Museum of Art (編號 1979.507.2).
century, strongly resembling the present lot, in the
collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New estimate euR 3.000,-
York (accession no. 1979.507.2).
Starting price EUr 1.500,-
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