A gilt-copper alloy 'Taming of Nalagiri' group, Nepal, 19th century

This ornate and elaborate gilt-copper sculptural group depicts the Buddha Shakyamuni subduing the wild elephant, Nalagiri, one of the most important miracles performed during his lifetime. According to the tale, the Buddha’s jealous cousin, Devadatta, incited to anger the elephant and then released her in a village in which the Buddha was staying; the Buddha, recognizing Nalagiri’s rage was actually fear, bestowed on her calming love and kindness, subduing the majestic animal. The present work depicts the moments after his critical intervention, with Nalagiri prostrate on bended knee before the figure of the haloed Buddha, who holds his right hand in a gesture of dispelling fear, and his left offering gifts, in this case presumably the gift of love. The pair are flanked by three followers of the Buddha with the shaved heads and simple robes of monks, and all are set within an elaborate landscape, with blossoming shrubbery and trees with monkeys cavorting in their boughs. Demonstrating its technical marvel, nearly each leaf of the foliage is separately cast, and the blossoms are inlaid with semi-precious stones.

The ‘Taming of Nalagiri’ story was considered within Mahayana Buddhism to be one of the eight most important events in the life story of the Buddha. Going back to as early as the Gandharan period in the early centuries of the Common Era, the life stories of the Buddha, particularly in groups of eight, had been represented in narrative art. Within the Nepalese context, such depictions are most commonly found in Buddhist paintings, known as paubha; representations in sculpture are significantly more rare. It is possible the present work was part of a larger group, depicting the eight major life stories of the Shakyamuni Buddha; there are a handful of extant examples from the same period as the present work depicting the birth of the Buddha from Queen Maya’s side, such as the magnificent figure at the Musée Guimet (accession no. MA 1779), illustrated on the museum’s website. Other examples depicting the ‘Taming of Nalagiri’ moment are rare, but another closely related group was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 27th April 2003, lot 51. For another example of similar workmanship, see a wall-mounted gilt-copper alloy depiction of the birth of the Buddha, illustrated in Pratapaditya Pal, The Arts of Nepal, Vol. 1, Sculpture, Leiden, 1974, pl. 273.