Page 196 - Bonhams NYC Indian and Himalayan Art March 2019

946
A COPPER AND SILVER INLAID COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF A Another portrait bronze in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, attributed
BUDDHIST HIERARCH to the 13th/14th century, has a similar shape of the head, rounded
TIBET, 14TH CENTURY arms, garments, and base. Also see another figure of lama sold
Himalayan Art Resources item no.68301 at Bonhams, New York, 14 March 2017, lot 3250, to compare the
6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm ) high consistent composition, the representation of robes, and particularly
the way the left hand holds the mala.
$100,000 - 150,000
Exhibited
西藏 十四世紀 錯銀錯紅銅佛教上師銅像 Casting the Divine: Sculptures of the Nyingjei Lam Collection, Rubin
Museum of Art, New York, 2 March 2012 - 11 February 2013.
The monk’s exceptional portrait shows him deep in imperturbable Stable as a Mountain: Gurus in Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art,
meditation. He holds his mala in both hands, concentrating on the New York, 13 March - 13 July 2009.
spiritual world. His wrinkled brow betrays years of study and Buddhist
practice. His eyes downcast and half-closed appear contemplative, Provenance
while his gentle smile indicates his delight at the inner fulfillment found The Nyingjei Lam Collection
in his pursuit of enlightenment. On loan to the Rubin Museum of Art, New York, 2005-2019

The monk’s short crop of hair, with a heart-shaped hairline, and his
big ears are conventional in Tibetan monastic portraits. The treatment
of his billowing robes also follows a convention often used in portraits
for the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism between the 12th and 14th
centuries. The luxurious garment drapes over his body with naturalistic
folds, and a line of decoration within the copper-inlaid hem is finely
chased.

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