Footnotes

This beautiful image of Buddha has perfectly organized and voluminous lotus petals. Its maker flexed the lustrous brass into soft contours around his chest and waist, achieving a slender, yet supple figure. Buddha's feet and hands are handsomely conceived with plump soles and distinct digits with copper-inlaid nails. Thick bands of patterned copper inlay mark the hems of his robe, sided by fine silver beading. The precious metals again adorn his face, with puckered copper lips, and eyes of silver-inlaid centers flanked by copper edges, alluding to Buddha's enlightened state within.

Stylistically, the present lot relates to a group of early Tibetan bronzes, produced in the 13th century, of which numerous examples are preserved in temple collections in Lhasa and published in von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculptures in Tibet, Hong Kong, 2001, figs. 322A-F. These are typically cast in two parts and more often show the Buddha in bhumisparsha mudra, but the robes are arranged in much the same fashion, and many feature similar tension lines in the robe stretching between his torso and left arm.

The close-fitting robe, which fans out before the shins, eclipses his left wrist, and drapes over Buddha's left shoulder, indicate a stylistic borrowing from Northeastern Indian Pala prototypes, reflected in five 10th-century bronzes held in the Calcutta Museum (see Niharranjan, Eastern Indian Bronzes, New Delhi, 1986, nos. 217-21). Meanwhile, the fishtail hem, draped high above his left shoulder, and the additional draped over his left bicep are characteristics of the 13th-century Khasa Malla style, evident in bronzes held in the Rubin Museum of Art and the Patan Museum (see HAR item nos. 65687 & 59501, respectively). The fusion of these elements indicate to art historians that early Tibetan bronze casters turned to the Buddha images from India and Nepal for inspiration when first creating their own.

Provenance
Private Asian Collection


錯銀錯紅銅釋迦牟尼銅像
西藏，約十三世紀
喜馬拉雅藝術資源網2432號
高38釐米（15英吋）

2,400,000-3,000,000港元

此尊造像之蓮花寶座華美精緻，蓮瓣飽滿，造型規整。藝術家以光澤的黃銅塑造出佛陀柔軟的輪廓 、寬肩細腰、纖細而溫和。佛陀的手腳製作考究，腳掌圓鼓，指型寫實，更以紅銅鑲嵌指甲。袈裟衣緣處飾有寬厚且帶紋飾的紅銅條帶，其邊緣更有一行錯銀聯珠紋。佛陀面部亦以貴金屬裝點，嘴唇嵌以紅銅，眼部中心嵌銀眼角嵌紅銅，喻指其正等正覺之境界。

此尊釋迦牟尼像與一批十三世紀的西藏造像風格相似，其中不少現存於拉薩寺廟之中，參見von Schroeder， 西藏佛教造像， 香港， 2001年，322A-F號。此些造像大多分兩部分鑄造，且右手多結觸地印，但是袈裟的風格與本拍品大致相同， 左臂與腰部之間也都出現類似的衣褶。

釋迦摩尼修身的袈裟流暢地在腳前鋪成扇形、拂過左腕、衫腳輕掛左肩，此些細節均借鑒了東北印度帕拉王朝的造像風格，可參見藏於印度加爾各答博物館的五尊十世紀造像（Niharranjan，Eastern Indian Bronzes，新德里，1986年，217-21號）。同時，魚尾狀衫腳高掛左肩與另一衣角垂於左臂的特徵均符合十三世紀卡薩瑪拉風格，類似細節可在魯賓藝術博物館和帕坦博物館的收藏中見到（參見喜馬拉雅藝術資源網65687和59501號）。說明早期的西藏造像融合了尼泊爾及印度兩地的風格元素 。

來源
亞洲私人珍藏