A NEPALESE COPPER FIGURE OF INDRANepal, 15th-17th century. Cast seated in elegant maharajalilasana, the right hand resting on the raised knee, the other holding a lotus stem surmounted by a vajra, richly adorned in jewelry with inlays of ruby and turquoise glass paste.Provenance: French private collection.Condition: Good condition with minor wear and casting flaws, losses, small nicks here and there, light scratches.Weight: 1,255 g (incl. base)Dimensions: Height 17.5 cm (incl. base)The face showing a serene expression with heavy-lidded eyes and slender lips, flanked by lotus-form earrings, the hair surmounted by an ushnisha behind the large and distinctive crown. With a temple tang at the back and mounted on an associated Chinese zitan wood lotus base from the Qing dynasty. (2)The combination of the maharajalila asana and the mitre-like tall crown are iconic elements seen only in Nepalese depictions of the god Indra. The figure is cast in copper and adorned with the distinctive combination of ruby and turquoise colored settings typical of Kathmandu Valley metal sculpture. Indra's characteristic seated position, asana, evoking luxurious royal ease, embodies the sensuous quality of Nepalese sculpture in one of the most elegant iconographic postures in all Himalayan art.Indra is worshiped in Nepal by Hindus and Buddhists alike. In the Hindu tradition the god is often referred to by his epithet Sahasraksha, meaning 'The One with a Thousand Eyes'. In Buddhist mythology Indra is regarded as devaraja, the king of the gods. Indra Jatra, a pageant in honor of the god, takes place in Kathmandu each year in one of the most important religious festivals of the Newar community.Literature comparison: Compare to another bronze of Indra from the Nasli and Alice Heeramaneck Collection, in P. Pal, Art of Nepal, 1985, p.119, cat. no. S42. Compare the asana and crown style of a fifteenth century gilt copper Nepalese Indra from the Duke of Northumberland's collection, Sotheby's New York, 17 September, 2014, lot 442, and a thirteenth century example in the Norton Simon Museum, Pratapaditya Pal, Art of the Himalayas and China, New Haven and London, 2003, p. 85, cat. 52.Auction result comparison: Compare with a closely related but larger and slightly older copper figure of Indra at Christie's New York in Indian and Southeast Asian Art on 14 September 2010, lot 75, sold for USD 122,500.尼泊爾帝釋天銅像 尼泊爾,十五至十七世紀。帝釋天優雅地坐於蓮座上,右手放在抬高的膝蓋上,左手握著一個由金剛杵頂著的蓮花莖,上面飾有紅寶石和綠松石玻璃鑲嵌的珠寶。 來源:法國私人收藏 品相:狀況良好,有輕微磨損和鑄造缺陷,缺損失,局部有小刻痕,輕微划痕。 重量:含底座1,255 克 尺寸:縂高17.5 厘米 拍賣結果比較:一件十分相近但更早的帝釋天銅像售于紐約佳士得Indian and Southeast Asian Art 拍場,2010年9月14日, lot 75, 售價USD 122,500