A MONUMENTAL AND MASSIVE (820 KG) STONE TORSO OF A BODHISATTVA, KUSHAN PERIOD, ANCIENT REGION OF GANDHARA, CIRCA 3RD-4TH CENTURY

Masterfully carved, the muscular torso with a naturalistic sense of definition and depth, adorned in a series of necklaces and sacred threads, draped in a diaphanous dhoti falling in thin pleats against the lower body, subtly outlining the firm legs and bent left knee, secured with a ribbon knotted to the front, a voluminous shawl falls over the left shoulder, dipping artfully across the thighs and then rising up to wrap around the right arm.

Provenance: The Kienzle Family Collection, Stuttgart, Germany. Acquired between 1950 and 1985 by siblings Else (1912-2006), Reinhold (1917-2008), and Dr. Horst Kienzle (1924-2019), during their extensive travels in Asia. Subsequently inherited by Dr. Horst Kienzle and bequeathed to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, Germany. Released through museum deaccession in 2024. The Kienzle siblings were avid travelers and passionate collectors of Asian and Islamic art. During their travels, the Kienzle’s sought out and explored temples, monasteries, and markets, always trying to find the best pieces wherever they went, investing large sums of money and forging lasting relationships to ensure they could acquire them. Their fervor and success in this pursuit is not only demonstrated by their collection but further recorded in correspondences between Horst Kienzle and several noted dignitaries, businesses and individuals in Nepal and Ladakh. Their collection had gained renown by the 1970s, but the Kienzle’s stopped acquiring new pieces around 1985. Almost thirty years later, the collection was moved to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, opened by Peter Hardt in 2014. Before his death in 2019, Horst Kienzle bequeathed his entire property to Peter Hardt and legally adopted him as his son, who has been using the name Peter Kienzle-Hardt ever since.
Condition: Good condition overall, consistent with age. Visible losses, weathering, and erosion, with areas of encrustation, minor old fills, and stabilized structural fissures and cracks. Scattered chips, nicks, and surface scratches are present throughout. The pattern of surface alteration and the formation of fissures indicate that this torso was likely submerged in or exposed to water for an extended period, contributing to its distinctive texture and patina.

Material, source, and geology: While Gandharan sculptures are traditionally carved in local grey-to-black schist, petrographic analysis of the present piece confirms a dolomitic limestone (dolostone). Within the Gandharan supply hinterland, the most plausible provenance for such a carbonate lies in the Salt Range of Punjab, particularly the Jutana Formation—a thick Cambrian dolostone sequence exposed at Khewra Gorge, Nammal/Sakesar, and Kalabagh, all long-established quarry zones. The stone is dense and fine-grained, qualities that made it desirable in antiquity for its smooth surface and capacity to take a high polish. Analysis reveals surface alteration caused by exposure to hydrofluoric acid, which was often used in this region for cleaning excavated objects from encrustations of soil silicates and metal oxides. Beneath this altered crust, however, are distinct traces of natural weathering, indicating prolonged environmental exposure prior to the intervention.

Weight: 820 kg (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 154 cm (excl. stand), 198 cm (incl. stand)

Mounted on an associated metal stand. (2)

This exceptional torso of a bodhisattva is a paragon of Gandharan schist sculpture, its abundance of intricately carved details matched in quality by the extraordinary naturalism of the youthful figure and the large scale of the sculpture. Depicting a bodhisattva in the regal dress of an Indian prince, the figure captures the spiritual enlightenment of a semi-divine being who has postponed nirvana in order to act as a compassionate guide to those seeking enlightenment on earth.

These large figures reflect an important religious shift in Gandharan Buddhism from the Nayika (Theravada) school's focus on relics and stupas to Mahayana's emphasis on the veneration of icons in 3rd century CE. During this time, ateliers transitioned away from carving narrative panels that lined the façade of stupas, towards sculptures of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas that increasingly became the focus of worship.

With the rise of Mahayana Buddhism in the first few centuries of the Common Era, bodhisattvas took on a new and profound importance in Buddhist worship. While earlier practice had focused on the teachings of the Buddha Shakyamuni, and for the populist masses, worship of the Buddha’s relics as enshrined in the stupa, the sutras of Mahayana Buddhism expanded on the role of bodhisattvas as cult deities worthy of worship in their own right. Perhaps the two most important of the bodhisattvas within the new forms of worship were Maitreya, considered to be the buddha of the future, and Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion.

Expert’s note: The lavish decoration of the figure extends to the luxurious jewelry in which the bodhisattva is bedecked. His chest is adorned with a series of necklaces and sacred threads, each based on actual jewelry types that are known from found extant examples:
- Closest to his neck is a wide torc decorated with medallions carved in the form of faceted gems and interspersed by strands of pearls.
- Over the torc hangs a heavy multi-chain necklace joined at the chest with dragon-head-form clasps, which are in turn connected by another faceted gem. Such necklaces were likely made by joining thousands of small gold loops into larger chains, as evidenced by an example found at Dalverzine-tepe in Uzbekistan, illustrated by C. Woodford Schmidt in “The Sacred and Secular: Jewellery in Buddhist Sculpture in the Northern Kushan Realm,” The Jewels of India, Bombay, 1995, p. 31, fig. 14.
- Another multi-strand chain necklace hangs diagonally across his chest, looping over his proper right shoulder.
- The final strand of jewelry runs from his proper left shoulder to the right side of his ribcage, and supports small beads and amulet boxes which would have held rolled-up sutras; extant examples of this form can be found in the collection of the British Museum (acc. no. 1880.29).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 2 October 2018, lot 6
Price: HKD 2,560,000 or approx. EUR 318,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A schist torso of a Bodhisattva, ancient region of Gandhara, circa 4^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling of the stout torso and similar drapery of the garments and layers of jewelry. Note the smaller size (85 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 7 October 2019, lot 913
Price: HKD 1,100,625 or approx. EUR 134,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A schist torso of a Bodhisattva, ancient region of Gandhara, 3^rd-4^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling of the stout torso and similar drapery of the garments and layers of jewelry. Note the smaller size (80 cm).