16th Oct, 2025 11:00
TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism
27
AN IMPORTANT GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF A ROYAL DONOR, NEPAL, 17TH-18TH CENTURY
Sold for €9,100
including Buyer's Premium
Finely modeled seated with the hands folded in anjali mudra before the chest, wearing long flowing robes detailed with neatly incised lines at the arms, the neck adorned with two beaded necklaces, a cape framing his back, the sash between his knees detailed with geometric bands above stylized flowers, the face with almond-shaped eyes, elegantly arched brows, large raised tika, prominent nose, and slender lips, flanked by pierced lobes, the head surmounted by a voluminous turban.
Observe the Indian katar dagger tucked into the donor’s belt.
Provenance: From a Belgian private collection.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, light scratches, some rubbing to the gilt, two tiny cracks to the underside of the dress, tiny nicks, manufacturing irregularities, and obvious losses. Fine, naturally grown patina, the interior with cuprite and malachite encrustation.
Weight: 758 g
Dimensions: Height 17.7 cm
There is a long tradition of acknowledging the role of donors as patrons of Indian religious art. It initially took the form of donor inscriptions that recorded their philanthropy and meritorious intentions. Later, donor portraits appeared. Such portraits have been part of Nepalese art since the Licchavi period, about 300-800 AD.
Donor portraits like the present lot can be found at several important temples in Nepal, such as the great Vaishnava temple of Changu Narayan (fig. 1), located on a hilltop of Changu (also called Dolagiri) in the eastern Kathmandu Valley; and Kwa Baha, The Golden Temple of Nepal (fig. 2), situated in Patan.
This figure’s Rajput-style dress was popular in court circles in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Nepal. It most likely formed part of an ensemble, together with his wife, revering an image of the deity they had donated.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related Nepalese gilt-copper alloy figure of a lamp bearer, “Presumed Portrait of a Nobleman”, dated by inscription to 1698, 25.4 cm tall, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 2020.288.1. Compare a related Nepalese gilt copper repoussé figure of a female donor, dated 1790-1810, 33 cm tall, in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number IM.371-1914.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 15 September 2015, lot 46
Price: USD 60,000 or approx. EUR 70,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of donor, Nepal, 17th/18th century
Expert remark: Compare the identical subject and rich gilding, with similar sash between the legs. Note the size (14.5 cm).
Finely modeled seated with the hands folded in anjali mudra before the chest, wearing long flowing robes detailed with neatly incised lines at the arms, the neck adorned with two beaded necklaces, a cape framing his back, the sash between his knees detailed with geometric bands above stylized flowers, the face with almond-shaped eyes, elegantly arched brows, large raised tika, prominent nose, and slender lips, flanked by pierced lobes, the head surmounted by a voluminous turban.
Observe the Indian katar dagger tucked into the donor’s belt.
Provenance: From a Belgian private collection.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, light scratches, some rubbing to the gilt, two tiny cracks to the underside of the dress, tiny nicks, manufacturing irregularities, and obvious losses. Fine, naturally grown patina, the interior with cuprite and malachite encrustation.
Weight: 758 g
Dimensions: Height 17.7 cm
There is a long tradition of acknowledging the role of donors as patrons of Indian religious art. It initially took the form of donor inscriptions that recorded their philanthropy and meritorious intentions. Later, donor portraits appeared. Such portraits have been part of Nepalese art since the Licchavi period, about 300-800 AD.
Donor portraits like the present lot can be found at several important temples in Nepal, such as the great Vaishnava temple of Changu Narayan (fig. 1), located on a hilltop of Changu (also called Dolagiri) in the eastern Kathmandu Valley; and Kwa Baha, The Golden Temple of Nepal (fig. 2), situated in Patan.
This figure’s Rajput-style dress was popular in court circles in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Nepal. It most likely formed part of an ensemble, together with his wife, revering an image of the deity they had donated.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related Nepalese gilt-copper alloy figure of a lamp bearer, “Presumed Portrait of a Nobleman”, dated by inscription to 1698, 25.4 cm tall, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 2020.288.1. Compare a related Nepalese gilt copper repoussé figure of a female donor, dated 1790-1810, 33 cm tall, in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number IM.371-1914.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 15 September 2015, lot 46
Price: USD 60,000 or approx. EUR 70,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of donor, Nepal, 17th/18th century
Expert remark: Compare the identical subject and rich gilding, with similar sash between the legs. Note the size (14.5 cm).
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