11th Apr, 2024 11:00
TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism
46
A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF EKADASHAMUKHA AVALOKITESHVARA, TIBETAN-CHINESE, 18TH CENTURY
Sold for €4,420
including Buyer's Premium
Finely cast, standing in samabhanga on an oval lotus dais with a beaded rim, his principal hands clasped in anjali mudra, while his secondary hold a lotus blossom, water pot, ring, with two held in vitarka mudra, and the lowest held in varada mudra. Wearing a billowing shawl and dhoti incised with foliate patterns along the hem, secured at the waist by a sash suspending beaded jewelry, adorned with fine necklaces and arm bands. The base is sealed and incised with a four-pronged vajra.
Provenance: APN Trading Corp, Bay Shore, New York, 13 May 1995. A private collection in Maryland, USA, acquired from the above. A copy of the previous owner’s detailed typed inventory, confirming the dating and provenance stated above, accompanies this lot.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, minor casting flaws, light rubbing to the gilt, small nicks, the back of the base drilled with a small hole, the top of the base with very minor remnants of adhesive.
Weight: 625.9 g
Dimensions: Height 18.6 cm
The eight-arm deity has eleven heads, and most bear the same serene expression. Wearing a panel tiara and large earrings, their faces have almond-shaped eyes, sinuous brows, and bow-shaped lips. The face of a wrathful deity sits beneath the uppermost head of Buddha.
One prominent Buddhist story tells of Avalokiteshvara vowing never to rest until he had freed all sentient beings from samsara. Despite strenuous effort, he realizes that many unhappy beings were yet to be saved. After struggling to comprehend the needs of so many, his head splits into eleven pieces. Amitabha, seeing his plight, gives him eleven heads with which to hear the cries of the suffering. Upon hearing these cries and comprehending them, Avalokiteshvara tries to reach out to all those who needed aid but found that his two arms were shattered into pieces. Once more, Amitabha comes to his aid and invests him with a thousand arms with which to aid the suffering multitudes.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 21 March 2012, lot 811
Price: USD 25,000 or approx. EUR 31,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara, Tibeto-Chinese, 18th century
Expert remark: Compare the related subject, modeling, manner of casting, and gilding. Note the similar size (19.3 cm).
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams London, 9 November 2017, lot 212
Price: GBP 16,250 or approx. EUR 27,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-bronze figure of eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara
Expert remark: Compare the related subject, modeling, manner of casting, and gilding. Note the size (24 cm).
Finely cast, standing in samabhanga on an oval lotus dais with a beaded rim, his principal hands clasped in anjali mudra, while his secondary hold a lotus blossom, water pot, ring, with two held in vitarka mudra, and the lowest held in varada mudra. Wearing a billowing shawl and dhoti incised with foliate patterns along the hem, secured at the waist by a sash suspending beaded jewelry, adorned with fine necklaces and arm bands. The base is sealed and incised with a four-pronged vajra.
Provenance: APN Trading Corp, Bay Shore, New York, 13 May 1995. A private collection in Maryland, USA, acquired from the above. A copy of the previous owner’s detailed typed inventory, confirming the dating and provenance stated above, accompanies this lot.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, minor casting flaws, light rubbing to the gilt, small nicks, the back of the base drilled with a small hole, the top of the base with very minor remnants of adhesive.
Weight: 625.9 g
Dimensions: Height 18.6 cm
The eight-arm deity has eleven heads, and most bear the same serene expression. Wearing a panel tiara and large earrings, their faces have almond-shaped eyes, sinuous brows, and bow-shaped lips. The face of a wrathful deity sits beneath the uppermost head of Buddha.
One prominent Buddhist story tells of Avalokiteshvara vowing never to rest until he had freed all sentient beings from samsara. Despite strenuous effort, he realizes that many unhappy beings were yet to be saved. After struggling to comprehend the needs of so many, his head splits into eleven pieces. Amitabha, seeing his plight, gives him eleven heads with which to hear the cries of the suffering. Upon hearing these cries and comprehending them, Avalokiteshvara tries to reach out to all those who needed aid but found that his two arms were shattered into pieces. Once more, Amitabha comes to his aid and invests him with a thousand arms with which to aid the suffering multitudes.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 21 March 2012, lot 811
Price: USD 25,000 or approx. EUR 31,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara, Tibeto-Chinese, 18th century
Expert remark: Compare the related subject, modeling, manner of casting, and gilding. Note the similar size (19.3 cm).
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams London, 9 November 2017, lot 212
Price: GBP 16,250 or approx. EUR 27,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-bronze figure of eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara
Expert remark: Compare the related subject, modeling, manner of casting, and gilding. Note the size (24 cm).
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