A polished sandstone head of a Jina, Western India, 12th/13th Century

Indian Antiques Objects d'Art, Los Angeles, 16th November 1968. 

Collection of Edward Albee (1928-2016).

Sotheby's New York, 22nd March 2018, lot 1021.

The beautifully carved life size sandstone head carries a lustrous polish characteristic of medieval Jain sculpture from Central India. Every element is precisely articulated, from the individual curls of hair, wide, alert eyes and pursed lips. The cranial bump atop the head, capped by a flower, might have been influenced by Buddhist imagery. For a complete figure of a seated Jina in meditation see The Peaceful Liberators: Jain Art from India, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, 1994, cat. no. 27.

Edward Albee (1928-2016) was a Pulitzer and Tony Award winning playwright, best known for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The rest of the collection of Edward Albee was sold in these rooms, 26th September 2017.