A COPPER AND SILVER INLAID COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF A BUDDHIST HIERARCH


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