Bodhisattva Gilt copper with semi-precious stones Nepal

Standing upright in an elegant posture with head turned and lowered, a compassionate gaze playing on the divine countenance, the raised left and lowered right hands in vitarka mudra showing the gesture of argumentation, the deity adorned with gem-set bodhisattva jewelry, wearing a scarf over the shoulders and a finely engraved floral patterned lower garment fastened at the waist with a long flowing sash.

Very heavily cast with gilding virtually untouched: the gilding of richer hue than in the catalogue illustration. Applique jeweled elements missing from the apex of the frontal crown leaf, the right earring, necklace, upper arm bands, sash fastening at the waist and the anklets. The separately cast scarf ends missing from the protruding lugs at the elbows. The hair painted black with a gilded plate. Good condition apart from the applique losses. 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.
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The gesture of argument displayed in the vitarka mudra is sometimes associated with Manjushri, the embodiment of knowledge, wisdom and learning, and may help to identify this magnificent and heavily cast gilt copper image, cf. a thirteenth century Nepalese standing bodhisattva in the Musée Guimet, tentatively identified as Manjushri, see Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, The Path to Enlightenment: Masterpieces of Buddhist Sculpture from the National Museum of Asian Arts / Musée Guimet, Paris, p. 43, cat 25. However, a Nepalese standing bodhisattva with both hands in vitarka mudra, now in the Asia Society, is firmly identifiable as Avalokiteshvara, see Asia Society, A Passion for Asia: The Rockefeller Legacy, p. 169. The present example remains unidentified through lack of firm iconographic evidence, but is very likely to represent Avalokiteshvara in his form as Padmapani, the Lotus Bearer, Nepal's most popular bodhisattva. Standing with head gently inclined with a benevolent downward gaze, the sculpture embodies the principal Buddhist tenet of Compassion. The rich gilding and fabulous jewel decoration are quintessential qualities of Newar sculpture. Compare the seamlessly inset light and dark blue pattern of semi-precious stones of the crown band and the jewelled belt with a sixteenth century Manjushri in the Chowni Museum, Nepal, see A. W. Macdonald & Anne Vergati Stahl, Newar Art: Nepalese Art During the Malla Period, Warminster, 1979, p. 44, pl. 29. Compare also the engraved floral patterns and stone inlay with a sixteenth century repoussé Sitatara from the Avery Brundage Collection in the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, see Ulrich von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1981, p. 381, pl. 102G.