- 914
A COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF ADHIKARANANDI & CONSORT SOUTH INDIA, CHOLA PERIOD, 13TH CENTURY |
Estimate
400,000 - 600,000 USD
bidding is closed
Description
- Height 24 in. (61 cm.)
the elegant image of Adhikaranandi standing in slight contrapposto with his primary hands in anjali mudra showing respect to his master Shiva, his secondary hands mirroring his Lord’s attributes the mrga or antelope and now missing battle-axe or parasu, clad in a short veshti secured at his waist with an elaborate jeweled girdle, his hair arranged in a tall jatamukuta, his consort Suyasa standing in tribhanga with her right hand upraised in ahuya varada mudra, the left pendent at her side in lola mudra, ornamented in upavita, collar, and tiered karandamukuta, her long dhoti incised with foliate motifs, both figures placed on upturned lotuses supported on a rectangular tiered pedestal
Provenance
Sotheby's New York, March 27, 1991, lot 60.
William H. Wolff, Inc.
William H. Wolff, Inc.
Exhibited
The Art of India, The Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester, April 7-30, 1961, no. 47, illus. (handbook)
Condition
In very good overall condition. With apparent losses including the battle-axe from the male figure's proper second right arm and the chakra at the back of the female figure's head. Overall wear and accretion due to ritual use and handling. No restoration.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
Nandikesha mahabhaaga Shiva dhyana parayaana
Uma shankara sevartham anugyaam dhatumarhasi Oh Nandi who is ever engaged in meditation to Lord Shiva
Please permit me to be of service to Shiva and Parvathi!
As the chief of Shiva’s army of ganas (shreshtamganadevatam), Adhikaranandi or Nandikeshvara as he is also known, holds a special place in the worship of the Lord. There are various myths relating to the origin of this deity. In essence, Adhikaranandi’s ardent devotion and adoration for his Lord makes him a vessel for Shiva’s teaching and thereby he serves as a symbol for the ideal devotee – one who waits patiently to receive his Lord’s grace. For this reason the iconography of this image is a reflection of Shiva and Uma’s manifestation in the Alinganamurti form.
This bronze would have been used in ritual processions. In South India, the creation of bronze images for the purpose of worship began in the Eighth Century during the Pallava period but the art of metal casting reached its apogee under the patronage of the Chola monarchs. Chola bronzes were made from wax models using the ‘lost wax’ or cire perdue process. The finest bronzes comprised an alloy of at least five metals (panchaloham), which included copper, tin, lead, gold and silver. The fact that these were solid cast indicates the extent of the expense undertaken in the production of these ritual icons. Images such as these were specifically created to be portable. The holes at the base of the pedestal in the present sculpture were receptacles for long poles on which the image would be balanced as it was carried on the shoulders of devotees during processional worship.
Besides the skill required in casting, Chola craftsmen perfected the harmony of line and form in these images creating some of the finest freestanding sculptures in existence. The perfect equipoise of the figures in the present image attests to the mastery achieved by the bronze casters while their serene, joyful countenance radiates the spirit of bhakti or loving devotion symbolized by the subject.
Whilst images of Adhikaranandi are ubiquitous in Shiva temples, they are seldom encountered in institutional or private collections, making this a rare object indeed. A large sculpture of Adhikaranandi from Thanjavur, featured alone without his consort, is currently in the collection of the Government Museum Madras, accession no. 634/68. The circular patterning on Suyasa’s dhoti in the present sculpture is reminiscent of a similar textile seen on an image of Krishna in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, see V. Dehejia, The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India, 2002, cat 52, pp. 200-203.
Uma shankara sevartham anugyaam dhatumarhasi Oh Nandi who is ever engaged in meditation to Lord Shiva
Please permit me to be of service to Shiva and Parvathi!
As the chief of Shiva’s army of ganas (shreshtamganadevatam), Adhikaranandi or Nandikeshvara as he is also known, holds a special place in the worship of the Lord. There are various myths relating to the origin of this deity. In essence, Adhikaranandi’s ardent devotion and adoration for his Lord makes him a vessel for Shiva’s teaching and thereby he serves as a symbol for the ideal devotee – one who waits patiently to receive his Lord’s grace. For this reason the iconography of this image is a reflection of Shiva and Uma’s manifestation in the Alinganamurti form.
This bronze would have been used in ritual processions. In South India, the creation of bronze images for the purpose of worship began in the Eighth Century during the Pallava period but the art of metal casting reached its apogee under the patronage of the Chola monarchs. Chola bronzes were made from wax models using the ‘lost wax’ or cire perdue process. The finest bronzes comprised an alloy of at least five metals (panchaloham), which included copper, tin, lead, gold and silver. The fact that these were solid cast indicates the extent of the expense undertaken in the production of these ritual icons. Images such as these were specifically created to be portable. The holes at the base of the pedestal in the present sculpture were receptacles for long poles on which the image would be balanced as it was carried on the shoulders of devotees during processional worship.
Besides the skill required in casting, Chola craftsmen perfected the harmony of line and form in these images creating some of the finest freestanding sculptures in existence. The perfect equipoise of the figures in the present image attests to the mastery achieved by the bronze casters while their serene, joyful countenance radiates the spirit of bhakti or loving devotion symbolized by the subject.
Whilst images of Adhikaranandi are ubiquitous in Shiva temples, they are seldom encountered in institutional or private collections, making this a rare object indeed. A large sculpture of Adhikaranandi from Thanjavur, featured alone without his consort, is currently in the collection of the Government Museum Madras, accession no. 634/68. The circular patterning on Suyasa’s dhoti in the present sculpture is reminiscent of a similar textile seen on an image of Krishna in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, see V. Dehejia, The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India, 2002, cat 52, pp. 200-203.