A SCHIST WINGED ATLASAncient region of Gandhara, 3rd-4th centuryThe figure seated on a rectangular base, the left leg raised to the knee and the right leg bent outwards, the two hands resting on the respective knees, a muscular naked torso, the face with thick beard, two wings on the shoulders.13,5 cm highProvenance: Italian private collection.The figure of Atlas - in Greek-Roman mythology allied with the Titans in the clash that opposed them to the Olympian gods, condemned following the defeat to sustain the celestial sphere on his shoulders for eternity - often appears in the iconography of Gandhara art, used in series as a base for stupa reliquaries. In Asian iconography it appears to have wings, to highlight its belonging to the sphere of the superhuman.* The present lot is offered with export license.