Standing Vishnu Gilt copper Nepal

Gifted by the King of Nepal HM Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah to the late Ambassador HE Chester Ronning between 1954-65
Thence by descent

Very good overall condition. Some loss to the gilding and accretion throughout. Traces of vermilion on crown element. Original backplate and all original inlaid stones now missing, except one. Slight forward bend to torana, as visible in catalogue illustration.
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Four-armed Vishnu standing in samabhanga upon a rectangular plinth, surmounted by a flaming nimbus with pearl motif, wearing an elaborate crown with traces of vermilion paste and prominent central kirtimukha formerly adorned with semi-precious stones and tied with a sash, a high jatamukata secured with a band at the top of the head, the hair cascading in elegant curls round each shoulder, the aquiline nose offsetting strong eyebrows, the almond-shaped eyes and bud-shaped mouth, the body adorned with heavy foliate earrings, necklaces, bracelets and armlets with semi-precious stone, holding the four attributes of Vishnu: a mace in the upper left hand, a conch in the lower left hand, a flaming chakra in the upper right hand, and a lotus bud in the lower right hand, the powerfully modeled torso encircled at the shoulder with a beaded yajñopavitam, secured at the waist with an ornate belt, the dhoti intricately incised with foliate pattern and fastened at back of the sculpture with a fishtail knot, the belts with decorative sashes along the left and right legs, the back of the nimbus with copper alloy lug and fitting to secure the sculpture to its original mounting, the rectangular plinth with three donor figures surrounded with offerings for the deity beside an elaborate purnaghata, bearing inscriptions on the left and right plinth sides which reads:

In the auspicious year 226 [i.e.: 1105 CE] on the twelfth day of the bright half of the Kartika month, Sunday, Revati naksatra, in the reign of the great king Śri Śimvadeva, his minister Śrjayadhara Vada ritually consecrated (the image) of the supreme god Śrīvisnu in the Dev temple at the locality of Dolā Śikhara Nārāyana for the full moon day rite (called) Śrde(va)gañata.

Dr. Gautama Vajracharya explains that according to the popular Hindu myth, Vishnu (i.e. Narayana) annually slumbers during the four months of monsoon season, and wakes up on the twelfth day of the bright half of Kārtika month. This is the exact day for the consecration of the image.

Physically oriented in an anterior posture which art historian Dr. Pratapaditya Pal terms "emphatic frontality" – standing in equipoise with weight evenly distributed on both feet, or samabhanga – the current work was designed to be viewed and worshipped from the front. With its sensuous modeling and powerful build, this exceptionally fine work is a superb example of heroic Vishnu sculpture, and a testament to the renowned craft and artistry of Newari metalworkers in the medieval period. During the "Transitional" period (880 – 1200 CE), the Newari proclivity toward elaborate fire gilding and encrustation with semi-precious stones throughout was used to enhance the grandeur of form and divine proportion, further amplified by the later application of bright vermilion paste by worshippers.

Stylistically, Newari bronze casting followed the aesthetic and technical evolution of contemporaneous Gupta and Pala sculpture. However, facial features and physiognomy in bronze casting developed a distinctive expression in Newari ateliers – a slight widening in the eyes and face; the conjoined arc of the eyebrows and curvature of the nose; the grace and bulk in posturing; the prevalence of samabhanga figuration. For further discussion, see U. von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1981, pp. 300-303.

One third of the Brahmanic triad in the Hindu pantheon, Vishnu, the sustainer, is worshipped in many forms. Revered for his heroic actions in the epic volumes of the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas, he is known chiefly through his avatars Rama and Krishna. Generally represented as a handsome, voluptuous youth and dressed in royal accoutrements, Vishnu's two lower arms represent his involvement in the mundane sphere, while his two upper arms represent his involvement in the divine sphere. The mace in his upper left hand symbolizes primeval strength; the conch in his lower left hand symbolizes the "sound" of creation and the origination of the five elements; the flaming chakra in the upper right hand symbolizes the destruction of ego through the following of one's dharma; and the lotus bud in the lower right hand symbolizes spiritual perfection.

Extant examples, with all limbs and attributes still attached such as the current work, are extremely rare. For comparable 11th century Nepalese Vishnu sculptures in samabhanga, see P. Pal, The Arts of Nepal: Vol I, Leiden, 1974, pl. 31 and pl. 117, and S. Kramrisch, The Art of Nepal, New York, 1964, p. 65, pl. 10; see also P. Pal, Art of Nepal, Berkeley, 1985, pl. S24 for comparable 12th century facial attributes.

Sotheby's would like to thank Dr. Gautama Vajracharya for his kind assistance with the translation of the inscription.