Page 18 - Christies DEVOTION IN STONE Gandharan Art From a Japanese Collection Sept 23 2020 NYC

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A RARE GRAY SCHIST RELIEF
DEPICTING ATLANTYD FIGURES
ANCIENT REGION OF GANDHARA,
3RD-4TH CENTURY CE
9√ in. (25.1 cm.) high; 14√ in. (37.8 cm.) wide
$15,000-20,000
PROVENANCE:
Private collection, Japan, before 1990.
Important private collection, Japan, by 1990.
LITERATURE:
I. Kurita, Gandharan Art, vol. II, Tokyo, 1990,
p. 156, fig. 450.

Atlantyds are ostensibly Atlas figures from
the Greek Hellenistic tradition. The muscular
physiognomy and crouching position of the
present figures are derived from depictions of
yakshas, or guardian deities, who appear in the
Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist traditions. The present
lot demonstrates the strong influence of both
Greek and Indian traditions in Gandharan Art. For
a related example, see a panel with two atlantyd
figures in the British Museum collection (acc. no.
1914.5-2.2) illustrated by W. Zwalf in A Catalogue
of the Gandhara Sculpture in the British Museum,
vol. II, London, p. 216, fig. no. 377.

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