Kushan empire. Superbly modeled, standing in samabhanga with his left hand lowered holding a kamandalu (water pot), wearing a loose-fitting dhoti secured at the waist and a billowing scarf draping down from his left shoulder, the garments elegantly falling in neatly carved folds. He is richly adorned with fine jewelry. His serene face with heavy-lidded almond-shaped eyes below gently arched brows, centered by a raised urna, and full bow-shaped lips beneath a thick wavy mustache. His hair is neatly arranged in wavy locks secured by a headband, backed by a halo.

Provenance: Austrian private collection.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations, remnants of pigment, nicks, chips, losses.

Weight: 35.5 kg
Dimensions: Height 88 cm

Buddhists pour water from the kamandalu onto the palms of people, before rituals where the water symbolizes the elixir of life. Bodhisattvas like Maitreya and Avalokiteshvara are commonly depicted carrying the kamandalu. The kamandalu was initially imported from Hinduism to Buddhism, through the god Brahma to the bodhisattva Maitreya; it later was incorporated in representations of many Mahayana Buddhist deities.

In addition to schist, stucco was a popular medium for sculpture in the ancient Gandhara region. A lightweight, malleable ware, stucco readily lends itself to delicate detailing and sensitive modeling, conveying an emotional presence exemplified in this figure of Maitreya. Of the surviving Gandharan stuccos, some still show traces of their coloring, such as the present lot. Here the hair, mustache, brows, and irises are black. Few stucco figures have survived in their entirety, the present lot being a rare example of one of the better preserved stucco sculptures from this period.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related Gandharan stucco figure of Maitreya, 55 cm high, dated 4^th-5^th century, in the Musée Guimet, accession number MA 12974.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 20 March 2012, lot 16
Price: USD 98,500 or approx. EUR 127,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An important polychromed stucco figure of Buddha, Gandhara, 3^rd/4^th century
Expert remark: Compare the related modeling and similarly painted details. Note the size (80 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 23 September 2020, lot 636
Price: USD 40,075 or approx. EUR 44,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A stucco figure of Avalokiteshvara, ancient region of Gandhara, 4^th/5^th century
Expert remark: Note the size (53 cm).