A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF YAMANTAKA VAJRABHAIRAVA AND VAJRAVETALI INLAID WITH SEMI-PRECIOUS STONESTIBET, 17TH/18TH CENTURY |

the buffalo-headed yidam and his consort standing in fierce alidhasana on a lotus throne, the faces and hair with traces of cold gold and vibrant polychromy, the crowns and elaborate beaded jewelry ornamented with semi-precious stones, the thirty-four arms of the yidam holding myriad ritual weapons, the uppermost hands grapsing a separately-cast repoussé elephant skin, the primary arms of both the yidam and consort holding kartrika or choppers in the proper right hands and kapala or skull cups in the proper left hands, both wearing the six Tantric bone ornaments and trampling a variety of animals, beasts and deities underfoot, the lotus base adorned with a large triratna or triple-gem inlaid with semi-precious stones Himalayan Art Resources item no. 13480.

Doris Weiner, New York, 3rd June 1969.
Christie’s New York, 27th March 2003, Lot 62.
Collection of Edwin and Cherie Silver. Sotheby’s is delighted to present works from one of the great American collections of non-western art: The Collection of Edwin and Cherie Silver. This famous Los Angeles collection includes impeccable examples of classical South Asian, African, Pre-Columbian, Oceanic, and American Indian Art. The Silvers built their collection beginning in the 1960s, during the golden age of American post-war collecting in these categories. Works from the Silver Collection have been shown at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The National Museum for African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., The Los Angeles County Museum at UCLA, and the Center of African Art, New York.

In the memorable words of their children, Daniel Silver, Donna Silver Frajnd and Karen Silver Horowitz: “The works of art that entered the Silver Collection are expressions of our parent’s individual tastes, and their eye for both elegance and strength of form. The Silver Collection is the result of their dedication and shared passion for these extraordinary art forms. Each object has a voice in the chorus. Each acquisition bears a story evoking happy memories of our parents, and of the unique and wonderful experience of growing up amidst these stunning objects. These remembered experiences are those that shaped our family and our lives, and continue to enrich the three of us to this day.”

Very good overall condition. Traces of polychromy and cold gilding to faces and hair. Some losses to original inlaid stones. Minor bending to ritual implements. Flayed elephant skin at reverse separately cast. Some areas of wear to gilding and accretion throughout. Denting and bending to triple jewel element at base and throne platform. Figures and base separately cast. 2 mm. crack to lotus petal at reverse. Two lugs at reverse indicate possible missing aureole. Original base plate intact.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This complex and powerfully-modelled sculpture depicts Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, the bodhisattva of Discriminating Wisdom, together with his consort Vajravetali in ecstatic union.The large and ferocious buffalo head of Vajrabhairava with towering, fiery tresses coiled into thick ropes dominate the sculpture and commands the focal point. Six fierce human faces wrap around the back of the buffalo head, and are surmounted by a further fierce human face and the head of wrathful Manjushri.  

Yamantaka Vajrabhairava is one of the most formidable deities in the Tibetan Buddhist pantheon, the fearsome manifestation of the bodhisattva Manjushri, lord of transcendent wisdom. Vajrabhairava, the Adamantine Terrifier, stands in militant alidhasana with a fan of thirty-four arms surrounding his massive bulk. His eight legs are planted on row of birds and animals and rows of subdued Hindu deities demonstrated the perceived superiority of Buddhist philosophical inquiry. Under the proper right foot lie the deities Braha, Indra, Vishnu and Shiva; under the proper left foot lie the deities Kartika, Surya, Chandra and Ganesha. 

He grasps a panoply of solidly cast ritual weapons and implements, including a kartrika or chopper in the primary right hand and a kapala filled with amrita in the primary left hand. The myriad arms and heads and trampling legs symbolise the deity’s total mastery over all elements that bind sentient beings to the wheel of existence, the constant cycle of birth and death, passions, desires and fears.

The bull's head signifies Vajrabhairava's conquest of the buffalo-headed god, Yama, the lord of death in ancient Indian mythology, thus eliminating the obstacle of death (Sanskrit: yama-antaka) through the enlightened Buddhist state of transcendent wisdom.