A RARE AND LARGE ANDESITE FIGURE OF BUDDHA, CENTRAL JAVANESE PERIOD, SHAILENDRA DYNASTY

Java, Indonesia, 9^th-10^th century. The boldly carved volcanic stone statue depicts Buddha seated in vajrasana on a double lotus throne with his right hand resting on his leg, severed from the rest of his arm, and the left lowered above his lap, dressed in a sheer sanghati elegantly draped over the left shoulder and gathered in folds under the ankles. His face is serene with a broad nose, heavy-lidded eyes, and full lips forming a gentle smile. His hair is carved with snail-shell curls and is surmounted by a domed ushnisha. Overall, this is a quite spectacular example of the most ancient Buddhist art found in Indonesia.

Provenance: Collection of Moreno Maria Majandi, by the late 1980s. Collection of Paolo Bertuzzi, acquired from the above, circa 2000. Paolo Bertuzzi (1943-2022) was a fashion stylist from Bologna, Italy. He was the son of Enrichetta Bertuzzi, founder of Hettabretz, a noted Italian fashion company with customers such as the Rothschild family, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. Paolo Bertuzzi later took over his mother’s business and designed exclusive pieces, some of which were exhibited in the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum in New York, USA. He was also an avid collector of antiques for more than 60 years. His collection includes both archaic and contemporary art, and he edited two important books about Asian art, Goa Made - An Archaeological Discovery, about a large-scale archaeological project carried out with the Italian and Indonesian governments, and Majapahit, Masterpieces from a Forgotten Kingdom.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive ancient wear, distinct traces of weathering and erosion, encrustations, losses. It has become exceedingly rare to find ancient Buddhist statues in a 100% original and ‘as found’ condition, such as the present lot.

Dimensions: Height 100 cm

A Buddha image of ineffable quiet and stillness has been carved from rough volcanic rock. The profile and dome of the head are broad, allowing for a round tapering of the forehead, cheeks, and chin that, once finished with a polish, produce an overall impression of smoothness, belying the porous nature of the stone, which has resisted over a millennium of weather exposure with a stunning ease. The sculptors working on the great stone monuments of 9th century Central Java produced some of the most beautifully proportioned Buddhist sculptures of any period or medium.

The drapery of the robe as well as the manner of carving of the hands and feet is consistent with central Javanese period images of Buddha from temple sites. The purpose of these images of Buddhas is to represent the stages of the path to enlightenment in Buddhist cosmology. As visitors to temples ascend through the different levels, they are guided through the process on a symbolic journey from the realm of desire to the realm of form and finally to the realm of formlessness, ultimately reaching enlightenment at the summit.

The present statue is almost certainly from Borobudur or a related temple site, such as Sewu or Plaosan in Central Java. Built by the Shailendra dynasty around 825 CE, Borobudur is one of the greatest Buddhist monuments of all time, having one of the largest and most complete ensembles of Buddhist narrative relief panels in the world. Structured as a mandala of stacked platforms representing the three planes of existence in Mahayana cosmology (the world of desire, the world of forms, and the world of formlessness), Borobodur invites pilgrims circumambulating its didactic panels and sculpture to shuck the trappings of their perceived reality and realize their true inherent formlessness.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Paris, 11 December 2013, lot 357
Price: EUR 85,500 or approx. EUR 101,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare and important volcanic stone figure of Amoghasiddhi Buddha, Indonesia, Central Java, circa 9th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related pose, manner of carving, and losses. Note the similar size (107 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Galerie Zacke, Vienna, 25 April 2020, lot 461
Price: EUR 37,920 or approx. EUR 46,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A very large andesite statue of Buddha, Indonesia, Central Java, 9^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related pose, manner of carving, and losses. Note the stronger wear and much smaller size (74.5 cm).