A SCHIST RELIEF OF THE FOOTPRINTS OF BUDDHA, BUDDHAPADA, 4TH-5TH CENTURY OR EARLIER
This lot is a museum deaccession and is therefore offered without reserve

Northern India. Of circular form, deeply carved with a pair of footprints adorned with incised swastikas above triratnas on the toes, the soles similarly adorned with larger triratnas, enclosed by a band of flowerheads and a lappet border to the outer edge.

Provenance: Galerie Hardt (established in 1976), Radevormwald, Germany, before 2020. Acquired by the gallery’s founder Peter Hardt (b. 1946) during his extensive travels in Asia, the first of which occurred during a formative world tour in 1973. Throughout his storied career, Peter Kienzle-Hardt organized countless exhibitions and participated in major international art fairs. He made many important contacts during this time and eventually met the Kienzle siblings, who shared his passion for Asian art and culture. A strong bond and deep friendship developed, ultimately leading to the creation of the Museum für Asiatische Kunst decades later in 2014. While the museum’s permanent exhibition predominantly comprised pieces from the Kienzle Family Collection, Peter Kienzle-Hardt supplemented it with objects from his own collection. Before his death in 2019, Horst Kienzle bequeathed his entire property to Peter and legally adopted him as his son, who has been using the name Peter Kienzle-Hardt ever since.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, small chips, one minor loss to a corner, scattered nicks and scratches, encrustations, and signs of weathering and erosion.

Weight: 78 kg
Dimensions: Diameter 64 cm

Expert’s note: The present lot relates closely to a number of examples found in the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya and the Amaravati Stupa in Andhra Pradesh, two of the earliest and most important Buddhist sites. Compare a circular schist relief of Buddha’s footprints encircled by lotus petals in the Mahabodhi Temple, one of the most revered Buddhist pilgrimage sites in the world. The temple marks the location where Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree, becoming the Buddha, and dates back to the 3rd century BC when Emperor Ashoka first visited the site and erected a shrine. Compare also a circular buddhapada within a lotus blossom carved from stone, from Amaravati and now in the Government Museum at Egmore, Chennai, illustrated in the Virtual Museum of Images & Sounds, accession number ACSAA_12172. The Amaravati Stupa was also originally built under Ashako, and the stupa subsequently evolved over centuries into a grand structure richly adorned with intricate carvings and detailed narrative reliefs. These sculptures, depicting scenes from the life of the Buddha and Jataka tales, are considered masterpieces of early Indian art and reflect the development of the Amaravati School of sculpture. Though much of the original structure is now in ruins, the site remains significant for its historical and artistic value.

Depictions of the Buddhapada, or footprints of the Buddha, were one of the early aniconic symbols used to denote the presence of the Buddha. In Gandharan art, they are often found alongside images of the Buddha himself. The historical Buddha was first revered through emblems that evoke his presence rather than through figurative images, as the Buddha himself professed the danger of attachment to icons in his own pursuit of enlightenment. Thus, the present aniconic symbol can be thought to represent the early, foundational principles of Buddhist philosophy and the Four Noble Truths.

Buddhapada images such as the present lot demonstrate the proliferation of the dharma, and its size conveys the power of Buddhist teachings. The swastika—an ancient fertility symbol—on the toes represent immutability, while the triratna symbol represents the three jewels of Buddhism: Buddha, dharma, and sangha.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related green gray schist of Buddha’s footprint, Uttar Pradesh, 2^nd-1^st century BC, in the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai, illustrated in the Virtual Museum of Images & Sounds, accession number 15406.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 23 September 2020, lot 618
Price: USD 337,500 or approx. EUR 394,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare green schist Buddhapada, Ancient region of Gandhara, probably Swat Valley, 2^nd-4^th century CE
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of carving with similar geometric band to the side, sharing a clear iconographic influence with the present lot, and likely dating to the same period. Note the larger size (82.9 cm) and that only a single footprint is portrayed.