Footnotes

The subject of centuries of handling and ritual ablutions, the bronze's surface has achieved a mirror-like sheen from sustained worship. Further evidence is found in the w哦rn areas of the nose, mouth, and chin, caressed by the practitioner's thumb.

The simplicity of his robe concedes to the elegant body underneath. Its fishtail pleat across the left shoulder, and hems that spill onto the platform around his knees and ankles, follow the convention seen in an earlier c.12th-century Buddha image in the Potala Palace (von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculpture in Tibet, vol. 2, Hong Kong, 2001, p.1148, no.301B).

The use of silver and copper inlay to embellish portions of the bronze surface betrays the influence of imported sculpture from India during the early centuries of Tibet's adoption of Buddhism. Here it is employed to enliven the eyes, heighten the lips, and decorate the lotus petals. Meanwhile, the absence of beaded rims above and below the lotus petals marks a notable variation from Indian models.

The uncommon band of scrolling foliage along the base's lower rim draws a likeness to ornamentation from either Indian or Chinese sources. At once similar to patterning seen in Pala sculpture, it is also redolent of the scrolling vines in Yuan textiles (see ibid., p.1089, fig.XVII-3, and Watt, The World of Khubilai Khan, New York, 2010, p.113, fig.146, respectively).

Provenance
Private Collection of Ed O'Neill, Hong Kong, by 1990


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2438號
高22.9釐米（9英吋）

2,000,000-3,000,000港元

此尊銅像歷經數世紀的儀式洗禮，表面如鏡面般光華耀目。造像的鼻梁、雙唇、以及下顎均有更深程度的磨損，留下信徒拇指觸摸的烙印。

釋迦牟尼佛身著樸素而修身的袈裟，顯露出其下優雅的身型。魚尾狀衫腳輕掛於左肩，腳踝處袈裟之柔軟下擺散落於蓮花寶座之上，與布達拉宮中的一尊約十二世紀釋迦牟尼佛風格相似（參見von Schroeder，西藏佛教造像，卷二，香港， 2001年，頁1148，301B號）。

以錯銀錯紅銅工藝裝飾造像的做法並非受到西藏佛教早期從印度傳入造像的影響。此尊佛陀造像在眼睛、雙唇、及蓮瓣處錯銀或錯紅銅，使造像更加栩栩如生。同時，蓮座花瓣的上下方均無串珠邊緣，此點與印度造像風格差異顯著。

沿蓮座下方邊緣可見一條少見的捲草紋邊飾，可能受到印度或中國的影響。一方面與印度帕拉造像上的裝飾紋相似，另一方面亦與元朝織物上的卷藤紋有所共鳴（出處同上，頁1089，XVII-3號；以及 Watt， The World of Khubilai Khan，紐約，2010年，頁113,，146號）。

來源
Ed O'Neill先生私人珍藏，香港，自1990年前