Superbly cast and richly inlaid with turquoise and coral. Seated in vajraparyankasana atop a double-lotus base with beaded rims, his hands crossed before the chest in vajrahumkara mudra, the primordial Buddha holding a ghanta in the left hand and a vajra in the right. He is wearing a sheer dhoti with minutely beaded and meticulously incised hems, and adorned with similarly decorated jewelry.

His face with a serene expression marked by his downward gaze and subtle smile, flanked by long pendulous earlobes adorned with circular earrings. His hair neatly coiffed in three tiers, falling elegantly in wavy tresses along the shoulders, and surmounted by a bud-shaped finial behind the foliate paneled crown. The base sealed with a copper plate.

Provenance: Dutch trade. Acquired from a local private estate.
Condition: Very good condition with some old wear, casting irregularities, light scratches, few nicks, minor rubbing to gilt, one inlay lost and others possibly replaced. The gilt well preserved overall. The seal plate is possibly an ancient replacement. X-Ray images (available upon request) reveal the superb quality of the casting, seen from the inside.

Weight: 1 kg
Dimensions: Height 17.3 cm

Over the course of a millennium in India, the conception of what it meant to be a buddha, literally an ‘awakened one’, expanded. At first, ‘buddha’ simply referred to the historical figure Shakyamuni. Then, as others practiced the dharma, or Buddhist doctrine, and experienced enlightenment (nirvana), they concluded that, given the infinite temporal scope of the Buddhist cosmos, Shakyamuni could not be unique. There must be a source buddha from whom all others derive. Vajradhara, the ‘holder of the thunderbolt’, is one form of the original, primordial buddha. In this sculpture, Vajradhara can be identified by his forearms, which are crossed in the thunderbolt-syllable (vajra-humkara) gesture. Two lotuses on Vajradhara’s shoulders support a thunderbolt and a bell. The thunderbolt on his right shoulder represents the male principle of strategic spiritual action (upaya), as well as the compassion (karuna) with which such actions must be applied. The bell on his left shoulder symbolizes the female principle of emptiness (shunyata) realized by wisdom (prajna).

Literature comparison:
Compare a related gilt bronze figure of Vajradhara, inlaid with turquoise and coral, dated to the 16^th century, in the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, object number B60B165.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 21 March 2019, lot 940
Price: USD 20,000 or approx. EUR 24,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt copper alloy figure of Vajradhara, Tibet, 14^th/15^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling, manner of casting, and decoration with similar base, jewelry, double-beaded hems, inlays, and size (16 cm). Note the gilding which is thin compared to that of the present lot.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 30 May 2018, lot 641
Price: HKD 250,000 or approx. EUR 35,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inlaid gilt-bronze figure of Vajradhara 14^th-15^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling, manner of casting, and gilding, with a similar treatment of the jewelry and hems, fine eyebrows, wavy tresses of hair, and lotus base. Note the larger size (25.3 cm).