Published: John C. Huntington and Dina Bangdel, The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art, Columbus, 2003, page 108, figure 1.

Sensitively modeled and finely cast, seated in dhyanasana atop a double lotus base with beaded upper rim, his right hand held in varada mudra and the left lowered above his lap, wearing a sheer dhoti, billowing scarves and richly adorned with elaborate beaded jewelry, his serene face with sinuously lidded eyes, neatly incised brows centered by a rhombic urna, and full lips forming a calm smile, the hair piled up into a high chignon topped by a jewel behind the five-leaf tiara.

Provenance: Oriental Gem Co., London, United Kingdom, by 1971. The John C. and Susan L. Huntington Collection, Columbus, Ohio, USA. John (d. 2021) and Susan Huntington are important scholars of Buddhist art, who have done extensive field research and photographic documentation throughout Asia. The couple were not just partners in life but partners in their chosen work of teaching, researching, and publishing about the art of Asia. John’s doctoral dissertation, Styles and Stylistic Sources of Tibetan Painting, was a pioneering work written at a time when there was little, if any, scholarly attention being paid to the study of Tibetan art. Following his doctoral work, John spent 1969-1970 traveling in Asia on a National Endowment for the Humanities postdoctoral fellowship pursuing his study of Buddhist art. At the same time, Susan was doing field research in India on a Fulbright grant for her doctoral dissertation. They married in India in 1970. Prior to undertaking graduate studies, John had been a professional photographer and throughout his life, his passion for photography never waned. Susan had developed an abiding interest in photography since taking a course in high school. Together, with Susan making exhaustive field notes as they photographed, the pair developed a teamwork that continued throughout their lifetime of field work, culminating in the John C. and Susan L. Huntington Photographic Archive of Buddhist and Asian Art, which contains nearly 300,000 original slides and photographs documenting art and architecture throughout Asia. Both taught at the Ohio State University, with Susan serving as Dean of the Graduate School and Vice Provost for Graduate Education from 1995 and 2005, and John building a flourishing program in Asian art history, and they have published many articles and books on a wide range of topics related to Asian and Buddhist art, both separately and together. The collecting history of the Huntingtons aligned closely with their academic research and passion for learning. While they collected works in established categories that epitomized major Indian and Himalayan artistic styles or periods, they also pursued pieces that were little understood and that begged for further academic research.
Condition: Good condition commensurate with age. Expected old wear, predominantly from centuries of worship within the culture. Minor casting flaws, small dents, minuscule nicks, light scratches, some losses, the base and seal plate with tears and some warping. The face with remnants of gilt.

Weight: 1,602 g
Dimensions: Height 31 cm

Ratnasambhava is one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas (or Five Meditation Buddhas) of Mahayana and Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhism. Ratnasambhava's mandalas and mantras focus on developing equanimity and equality and, in Vajrayana Buddhist thought is associated with the attempt to destroy greed and pride. Ratnasaṃbhava is associated with the skandha of feeling or sensation and its relationship with consciousness. His activity in promoting Buddhism is enriching and increasing knowledge of Dharma. Ratnasambhava is associated with the jewel symbol, which corresponds with his family. His right hand is granting wishes. He presides over the South, his element is earth, his sense is smell, and his color is yellow. It seems that he was the least popular of the group of five cosmic Buddhas, and for this reason large statues of him are exceedingly rare.

Expert’s note: The present lot belongs to a group long considered to originate from western Tibet. However, more recent scholarship suggests this type of early Tibetan sculpture is more likely to be from the central regions where the primary stylistic influence up to around the 13^th century was the art of Kashmir and eastern India during the late Pala period. Tibetan bronzes with Pala influence are mostly un-gilded, like the majority of their Indian antecedents. Tibetan sculpture after the 14th century, however, is increasingly modeled and gilded in the Nepalese manner.

Literature comparison:
Compare two closely related hollow-cast brass figures of Ratnasambhava, one 42 cm high, the other 27 cm, with silver and copper inlays, both attributed to Western Tibet and dated to the 13^th century, illustrated in Ulrich von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, page 180, figs. 34A and 34B. Compare a related silver and copper-inlaid brass figure of Ratnasambhava, 42.3 cm high, attributed to western Tibet and dated to the 14^th century, in the Tibet Museum Fondation Alain Bordier, accession number ABS 032.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 22 March 2011, lot 357
Price: USD 194,500 or approx. EUR 249,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze figure of Buddha Vairocana, Tibet, 14^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related pose, dress, jewelry, expression, hairstyle, and crown. Compare also the related subject, depicting another of the Five Dhyani Buddhas, and lotus base. Note the closely related size (30.5 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 23 March 2010, lot 222
Price: USD 56,250 or approx. EUR 74,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze figure of Ratnasambhava, Western Tibet, 14^th/15^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, pose, hand gestures, dress, jewelry, lotus base with beaded upper rim, expression, hairstyle, and crown. Note the gemstone inlays, silver-inlaid eyes, and slightly larger size (38.1 cm).



十三至十四世紀西藏大型寶生如來銅像
寶生如來，面目慈祥，雙眉之間可見白毫，頭頂五葉皇冠後面鑲嵌著一顆寶石，身著華麗的菩薩裝，左手禪定印，右手下垂於膝前，掌心向外施與願印，跏趺坐坐在雙層蓮花座上。

出版：John C. Huntington、Dina Bangdel，《The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art》，Columbus，2003年，頁108，圖1。

來源：英國倫敦Oriental Gem Co.，約1971年；美國俄亥俄州哥倫布The John C. and Susan L. Huntington 收藏。John (2021年逝世) 與Susan Huntington是佛教藝術的重要學者，他們在整個亞洲進行了廣泛的實地研究和影像記錄。這對夫婦不僅是生活中的伙伴，也是亞洲藝術教學、研究和出版工作的伙伴。John的博士論文《Styles and Stylistic Sources of Tibetan Painting》(西藏繪畫風格及其來源) 是一部開創性的著作，因爲當時學術界幾乎不關注西藏藝術。完博士論文後，John 於 1969 年至 1970 年間在亞洲旅行，獲得國家人文基金會的博士後獎學金，繼續對佛教藝術的研究。與此同時，Susan 正在印度進行實地研究，以獲得福佈賴特交流項目對她的博士論文的資助。 他們於 1970 年在印度結婚。在攻讀研究生之前，John一直是一名專業攝影師，在他的一生中，他對攝影的熱情從未減弱。Susan在高中時就對攝影產生了濃厚的興趣。Susan在拍攝時做了詳盡的田野筆記，這對搭的團隊合作精神貫穿了他們一生的田野工作，最終建立了John C. 和Susan L. Huntington佛教和亞洲藝術攝影檔案館，其中包含近 300,000 張原創作品，幻燈片和照片記錄了整個亞洲的藝術和建築。兩人都在俄亥俄州立大學任教，Susan在 1995 年和 2005 年擔任研究生院院長和研究生教育副教務長，John則在亞洲藝術史上建立了一個蓬勃發展的項目，他們發表了許多與亞洲和佛教藝術相關文章和書，有獨立的，也有一起合作的。Huntington家族的收藏歷史與他們的學術研究和學習熱情密切相關。 雖然他們收集了代表印度和喜馬拉雅主要藝術風格或時期的既定類別的作品，但他們也追求鮮為人知且需要進一步學術研究的作品。
品相：品相良好，有磨損和使用痕跡；輕微鑄造缺陷、小凹痕、微小劃痕和缺損，底座和密封板有撕裂和一些翹曲。臉上殘留著鎏金痕跡。

重量：1,602 克
尺寸：高31 厘米

寶生如來為佛教五方佛中之南方如來，居於歡喜世界，代表毗盧遮那佛（釋迦牟尼佛的法身）的「平等性智」，也代表佛法微妙之德，能隨順眾生之所欲，滿足其所願，以便其修法。

專家注釋：本拍品屬於長期以來被認為起源於西藏西部的一類造像。然而，最近研究表明，這種類型的早期西藏造像更有可能來自中部地區，直到十三世紀左右，那裡的主要風格影響是來自帕拉王朝晚期克什米爾和印度東部的藝術。受帕拉影響的西藏青銅造像大多未鍍金，就像它們的大多數印度祖先一樣。然而，十四世紀之後的西藏雕塑越來越多地採用尼泊爾方式進行建模和鎏金。

文獻比較：
比較兩件非常相近的十三世紀西西藏空心鑄造寶生如來銅像，一件42 厘米高， 另一件錯銀銅合金，高27 厘米，見Ulrich von Schroeder，《Indo-Tibetan Bronzes》，香港，頁180，圖34A和34B。比較相近的十四世紀西西藏錯銀銅合金寶生如來銅像，高 42.3 厘米，Tibet Museum Fondation Alain Bordier，館藏編號ABS 032。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得，2011年3月22日，lot 357
價格：USD 194,500（相當於今日EUR 249,000）
描述：十四世紀西藏大日如來銅像
專家評論：比較非常相近的姿勢、衣著、珠寶、表情、髮型和皇冠。比較相近的主題和蓮座。請注意非常相近尺寸 (30.5 厘米)。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得，2010年3月23日，lot 222
價格：USD 56,250（相當於今日EUR 74,000）
描述：十四/十五世紀西藏大型寶生如來銅像
專家評論：比較非常相近的主題、姿勢、手勢、衣著、珠寶、表情、上翻飾珠蓮座、表情、髮型和皇冠。請注意此銅像有鑲嵌寶石、雙眼嵌銀，以及尺寸較大 (38.1 厘米)