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A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF LOKESHVARA PADMAPANI
NEPAL, 13TH CENTURY Himalayan Art Resources item no.16915 9 3/8 in. (23.1 cm) high
注脚
尼泊爾 十三世紀 銅鎏金蓮華手觀音像Avalokiteshvara, 'The Lord who Looks upon the World', offers a calm, benevolent gaze as his right hand adopts the gesture of granting wishes (varada mudra). The lotus at his left shoulder symbolizes every being's potential to achieve enlightenment despite their past flaws—just as the flower rises from murky waters. Avalokiteshvara is an enlightened being who eons ago pledged to postpone his departure from the cycle of death and rebirth, with all its inherent suffering, until he has helped every other sentient being escape it first. Thus, he is a paradigm of compassion that Mahayana Buddhist practitioners aspire to emulate. ? Produced on a more intimate scale, this sculpture depicting Avalokiteshvara is a quintessential Newari standing bodhisattva, one of Himalayan art's signature icons. The Newars are an ethnic group from Nepal's Kathmandu Valley who have been transmitting their artistic expertise across generations and are renowned for being among the most accomplished artisans in Asia. Newars were frequently sought after for major artistic projects in Tibet, Mongolia, and China. There is perhaps no better hallmark of the grace and sensitivity with which the Newars cast Buddhist sculptures than their classic representation of the young and lithe standing bodhisattva, seen in this example from the 13th century. The leitmotif of the standing bodhisattva in a graceful pose, with a bare torso, supple waist, and sheer lower garment, traces back to the Gupta period (4th-6th century), India's cultural Golden Age. A famed standing Padmapani from Sarnath in the National Museum in New Delhi exemplifies this visual idiom, which the Newars perpetuated (cf.?Across the Silk Road, Beijing, 2016, pp.160-1, no.70). ? Stylistically, the tail ends of the ribbons used to fasten Avalokiteshvara's crown (samkhapatra), appearing above each ear, help date the sculpture to the 13th century. Vajracharya has attributed the 'Rubin Museum Durga' (C2005.16.11) to this period because its ribbons are more prominent than in Newari sculptures produced before the 12th century, while being also simpler than those from the 14th century, which often display additional tassels (Vajracharya, Nepalese Seasons, New York, 2016, pp.25, 133 & 139). The Rubin Museum's masterpiece also shares the present sculpture's robust figural proportions and facial features—particularly an equally pronounced brow ridge. Other c.13th-century bronzes showing these features include an Uma Maheshvara in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, a Vishnu in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and a Vasudhara formerly in the Pan-Asian Collection (von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1981, pp.347-50, nos.89F, 90E & 91B, respectively). ? The 13th century marked the beginning of the enduring Malla dynasty, which reigned over the Kathmandu valley until the end of the 18th century. As Ian Alsop has summarized, "The Malla period in general was a period of overall political stability punctuated by internecine squabbles between the various principalities of the Nepal Valley. It was a time of considerable prosperity, nourished by the valley's fertility and by a lucrative trade with Tibet and India. It was also a time of great artistic activity, and Newar artists prospered through the patronage of the devout of the Kathmandu valley, the various noble houses there, and the wealthy lamas who eagerly sought the renowned Newar artists." (Alsop in van Alphen (ed.), Cast for Eternity, Antwerp, 2005, p.124) ? Provenance Doris Weiner Gallery, Madison Avenue, New York (label on base) Private Californian Collection