A COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF PADMAPANI LOKESHVARA WEST TIBET, 10TH – 11TH CENTURY

the deity standing with the right arm raised in abhayamudra, the left hand lowered and holding a curved stem of uptala lotuses rising up to the shoulder, wearing a dhoti incised with foliate bands and fastened with a sash falling to the sides, further embellished with beaded jewellery, the face with a benevolent expression, the hair gathered into a high chignon with strands of braided hair falling down either side of the shoulders, surmounted by a tripartite crown, traces of blue polychromy in the hair

Himalayan Art Resources item no. 13436

Collection of Nasli Heeramaneck, the Pan-Asian Collection, prior to 1972.
Collection of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, New York.
Christie's New York, 30th March 2006, lot 164.

Chandra Reedy, Himalayan Bronzes: Technology, Style and Choices, London, 1997, p. 187, cat. no. W130.

There is a break to the left side of the crown (loss of approx 1cm) and the tip is slightly dented. There is a loss to a hardstone inlay. Other general surface wear and bruising.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The following six lots emanate from the collection of a scholar who has formed his collection with a true eye for quality, acquiring sculptures of the highest quality in America, Europe and Asia, forming a truly comprehensive overview of Himalayan Buddhist art. From the outstanding and extremely rare Pala Kurukulla from Eastern India, through to the early Padmapani from Western Tibet, traversing past the fragmentary legacy of Densatil monastery, and finally to the extraordinarily powerful large figure of Yamantaka from Ming China, this is a journey that encapsulates the origin and path of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The collector was not only fastidious in selecting sculptures of a lustrous patina, as demonstrated by the rich copper body of the Kurukulla and the gorgeous Kashmiri-style patina of the Padmapani, but also perspicacious in acquiring those with truly illustrious provenances, which in this small section include the names of Heeramaneck, Ellsworth, Nitta and Capelo.

Previously part of the Pan-Asian collection of Nasli Heeramaneck (1902-1971), and later with Robert Hatsfield Ellsworth (1929-2014), this impressive, early figure has passed through the hands of some of the most significant Asian art dealers in North America.

This early sculpture of the bodhisattva Padmapani is cast in a lustrous bronze in the Kashmiri style. The style is based on the fabulous sculptural traditions imported into Western Tibet from North-Western India, the artistic traditions of which were all but wiped out by the later Islamic conquests in the medieval period.

Kashmiri artists were invited to establish ateliers in Western Tibet to ornament the burgeoning temples and monasteries as early as 980. These skilled artists were invited to the kingdom of Guge by the translator Rinchen Zangpo under the auspices of the Guge king, Yeshe-Ö, who was responsible for the second diffusion of Buddhism in Tibet. Thus a sophisticated Kashmiri-influenced style was established in Western Tibet, embodied in the current fine example, which set the local style for subsequent period throughout the region and informed later Central Tibetan sculpture.

The tripartite crown with aperture for an inlaid stone is a Kashmiri convention, as are the thickly coiled plaits which cascade elegantly down the shoulders. Traces of cold gold are visible at the back of the neck, as well as traces of blue polychromy in the hair. Compare the incised half-roundel motif on the dhoti with another twelfth century bronze depicting the bodhisattva Manjushri from Western Tibet, see Sotheby’s New York, Footsteps of the Buddha, September 2013, cat. no. 10.

Compare also the crown and necklace square apertures for inlaid-stone with another eleventh/twelfth century bronze figure of Padmapani from the Robert Ellsworth collection, illustrated in Marylin M. Rhie and Robert Thurman, The Sacred Art of Tibet, New York, 1996, pp. 136-137, cat. no. 28.