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Exhibited: Columbus Museum of Art, Shadow of the Dragon: Chinese Domestic and Trade Ceramics, 28 February-13 April 1982. The present lot formed part of the exhibition but was not included in the accompanying catalogue. Such omissions are common in museum exhibitions and may result from late-arriving loans, limitations of catalogue space and production schedules, sponsorship considerations, or budgetary constraints, and bear no relation to the importance or quality of the exhibited work.
Metallurgy: The alloy composition is highly consistent with Tibetan metal sculpture of the 16th–17th century: Cu 94 ± 2.8%, Zn 5.1 ± 0.3%, Fe 0.3 ± 0.1%, Ni 0.4 ± 0.1%, and As 0.2 ± 0.1%, with only a very small amount of lead. This copper-rich, low-zinc brass, containing minor naturally occurring metallic impurities, is characteristic of the heterogeneous copper alloys employed in Tibetan workshops during this period. The mercury-gilded surface is likewise fully consistent with traditional Tibetan manufacturing practice. The lightly developed corrosion, composed predominantly of copper salts, further corresponds well with the expected long-term aging of such an alloy.
Finely cast, the bodhisattva standing in a gently flexed tribhanga upon a separately cast lotus base, the right hand lowered in varadamudra and the left clutching the stem of a lotus blossoming beside the shoulder. He is clad in a diaphanous dhoti meticulously incised with dense foliate scrollwork, secured at the waist by an elaborate jeweled girdle, with long sashes falling gracefully between the legs. The slender figure is richly adorned with foliate earrings, necklaces, armlets, bracelets, anklets, and a long sacred thread descending across the chest.
The sensitively modeled, gold-painted face bears a serene and benevolent expression, with downcast eyes beneath gently arched brows, a slender nose, and full lips forming a subtle smile. The hair retains traces of blue pigment and is gathered behind an elaborate foliate crown centered by a diminutive image of Buddha Amitabha.
Provenance: Collection of Charles Chow, Columbus, United States, acquired in Southeast Asia between circa 1965-1975, and thence by descent in the family. Becker Antiques, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Copies of provenance statements written and signed by Atanas Nedyalkov of Becker Antiques as well as Graydon Sikes, Ohio, USA, dated 16 October 2025, each confirming the above, accompany the lot. Charles Chow (1925-2025) was a distinguished collector of Chinese ceramics, hailing from a prominent family as the grandson of Sir Shouson Chow (1861-1959), a Hong Kong businessman, politician, and Qing dynasty official. His collection, formed through inheritance and acquisitions in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and primarily through Parke-Bernet in New York starting in the 1970s, was further enriched by gifts from his brother, Fong Chow (Tsun Fong, 1923-2012), a renowned ceramicist who served as a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for twenty-five years. Chow and his wife developed a close relationship with the Columbus Museum of Art through Dr. Kamer Aga-Oglu, Curator Emeritus, who wrote the 1982 exhibition catalog where the present lot was exhibited and befriended the couple during their Southeast Asian buying trips. Becker Antiques was founded in 1969 by the Dutch dealer Jan Simon Becker and established itself over the following decades as a respected specialist in Asian art and antiques. Located in Amsterdam’s Museum Quarter, the gallery has long focused on Chinese ceramics — particularly pottery and funerary wares from the Han through the Ming dynasties — as well as Buddhist sculpture and selected works from East and Southeast Asia. Over more than fifty years, Becker Antiques has built an international clientele, supplying museums, private collectors, and dealers worldwide. In 2000, Atanas Nedyalkov joined the firm as a partner and today continues to lead the gallery, maintaining its emphasis on scholarship, quality, and long-term relationships within the global field of Asian art.
Condition: Overall good condition with expected ancient wear, casting irregularities, minor warping, light nicks and small surface scratches, few dings to the base, light corrosion and associated minor blistering to gilt, the pigments and areas of the gilding partially renewed over the past centuries. Remnants of old varnish.
Weight: 4,944 g
Condition: Height 38.5 cm
Expert’s note:
This refined gilt-bronze figure of Padmapani Lokeshvara belongs to a distinguished tradition of standing bodhisattva imagery that ultimately derives from the golden age of Indian sculpture under the Gupta dynasty, during the 4th to 6th centuries. Its characteristic conception—a limber pose, bare torso, supple waist, and diaphanous lower garment—is exemplified by the celebrated standing Padmapani from Sarnath in the National Museum, New Delhi (fig. 1). The Newars of the Kathmandu Valley adopted and preserved this ancient sculptural idiom, gradually transforming it through the exaggeratedly narrow waists and swelling thighs associated with the early Malla style from the 13th century onward. Renowned throughout Asia for their mastery of metalwork and painting, itinerant Newari artists transmitted their techniques across generations and were frequently commissioned by Tibetan patrons for major religious projects, including the tashi gomang stupas at Densatil and thangka sets produced for Sakya and Ngor monasteries. Compare a related 14th-century Nepalese gilt-copper standing Padmapani in the Rubin Museum of Art, object number C2005.16.8 (fig. 2); and a smaller example dated to the 13th century at Bonhams New York, 16 March 2021, lot 309 (fig. 3).
Avalokiteshvara, "The Lord Who Looks Down", does just so with a kind smile and a gesture of charity with his right hand. Avalokiteshvara is the paradigm of perfected compassion, one of the key virtues a practitioner must develop towards his or her own buddhahood. The master Newar depicts Avalokiteshvara arising from a lotus flower, an ubiquitous Buddhist symbol for any being's potential to rise from murky waters and realize their innate buddhahood. This form of Avalokiteshvara, known as Padmapani Lokeshvara, 'The Lotus Holder', echoes such symbolism, for by his hand help is provided toward enlightened salvation.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 19 March 2014, lot 1011
Price: USD 62,500 or approx. EUR 76,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of Avalokiteshvara, Tibet, 15th-16th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar pose, crown, and facial expression. Note the smaller size (30.5 cm) and inlays.
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