1900-1950. Gilt, ink and watercolors on paper, mounted as a hanging scroll. The thousand-armed, eleven-headed deity standing in samabhanga on a lotus dais emerging from a lake in a verdant landscape with colorful swirling clouds, surrounded by seated Buddhas and teachers. His main hands are clasped together in anjali mudra, his secondary hands holding attributes including a bow and arrow, lotus blossom, rosary, and dharmachakra, with countless further hands radiating around him.

Provenance: English trade.
Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear.

Dimensions: Image size 138 x 88 cm

One prominent Buddhist story tells of Avalokiteshvara vowing never to rest until he had freed all sentient beings from saṃsara. 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 shattered into pieces. Once more, Amitabha comes to his aid and invests him with a thousand arms with which to aid the suffering multitudes.

Expert’s note: Tibet was a de facto independent state between the collapse of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty in 1912 and its annexation by the People's Republic of China in 1951. In 1913, the Dalai Lama, who lived in exile in India, returned to Tibet and declared that Tibet's relationship with China ended with the fall of the Qing dynasty and proclaimed independence. Nonetheless, Tibetan paintings from this period such as the present lot exhibit the typical Chinese influences also seen in earlier thangkas from the 18^th and 19^th centuries, including the swirling colorful clouds and bluish-green verdant landscape.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams Paris, 10 June 2021, lot 46
Price: EUR 4,080 or approx. EUR 4,400 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A thangka of Sahasrabhuja Lokeshvara, Tibet, early 20^th century
Expert remark: Note the significantly smaller size (60 x 40 cm)



二十世紀初漢藏千手觀音唐卡
1900-1950年，紙本水墨設色描金，掛軸。蓮座從碧湖升起，山間祥雲，千手觀音上身肩搭帔帛，帔帛繞兩臂而下，流暢圓轉。正面雙手合十，右邊三手分別持念珠、法輪、施無畏印；左邊三手執蓮花、弓箭、淨水瓶。下身著長裙，以立姿站於被蓮莖托起的蓮花之上。

來源：英國古玩交易。
品相：品相極佳，輕微磨損。

尺寸：畫面138 x 88 厘米

一個佛教故事講述了觀世音菩薩發誓永不休息，直到他將所有有情眾生從輪迴中解脫出來。儘管付出了艱辛的努力，他還是意識到還有許多不幸的眾生沒有得到救度。在努力理解這麼多人的需求之後，他的腦袋裂成了十一塊。阿彌陀佛見狀，賜給他十一頭，讓他聽苦難的呼聲。觀世音菩薩聽到這些呼聲並領會了它們，試圖伸出手去幫助所有需要幫助的人，卻發現他的兩隻手臂都碎成了碎片。阿彌陀佛又一次來助他，賜他千手去救苦眾生。

專家注釋：這一時期的西藏繪畫（例如本拍品）展現了十八世紀和十九世紀早期唐卡中常見的典型中國影響，包括漩渦狀的彩雲和青綠山水景觀。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：相近
拍賣：巴黎邦瀚斯，2021年6月10日，lot 46
價格：EUR 4,080（相當於今日EUR 4,400）
描述：二十世紀初期西藏千手觀音唐卡
專家評論：請注意明顯尺寸較小(60 x 40 厘米)。