Page 154 - Bonhams NYC Indian and Himalayan Art March 2019

922
A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF PADMAPANI
TIBET, CIRCA 14TH CENTURY
With inset turquoise, coral, and lapis.
Himalayan Art Resources item no.61952
9 1/4 in. (23.4 cm) high

$50,000 - 70,000
西藏 約十四世紀 銅鎏金蓮華手觀音像

In this refined gilded sculpture, the seated Bodhisattva is benevolent and elegant.
Seated in the lalitasana posture, which adds a sense of regal ease, the Bodhisattva
puts his right hand in varada mudra, and his left hand is in vitarka mudra. Beautiful lotus
blossoms symbolize any being’s potential to rise from ‘murky waters’ to realize their innate
Buddhahood.

The Bodhisattva wears a diaphanous dhoti with fine patterns, exemplifying the pursuit
for rich and elaborate surfaces in Tibetan sculpture. The simple treatment of the crown
decorated with turquoise and the lotus flowers by his shoulders indicate a 14th century
date for the bronze. Compare with von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Sculpture, Hong Kong,
1981, p.430, no.113C, and Bonhams, New York, 13 March 2017, lot 3077. The crown’s
distinctive design is consistent with another Padmapani sold at Bonhams, London, 12
November 2015, lot 79. Also see a related gilt bronze formerly of the Pan-Asian Collection
sold at Christie’s, New York, 21 September 2007, lot 191, and a Manjushri sold at
Bonhams, New York, 19 March 2018, lot 3018.

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