
Mark Rasmussen
International Director
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Sold for US$23,750 inc. premium
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International Director
西藏 十三/十四世紀 金剛總持銅像
The primordial Buddha seems eternally resting in meditation in this gentle figure. Vajradhara is the progenitor of the Vajrayana Buddhist system, typically occupying the first position in most teaching lineages. He represents the highest state of enlightenment, its abstract perfection, and the sum of all Buddhist teachings.
The sculpture's distinctive petals, derived from Licchavi models, vaulted baseplate underneath, and the dark, copper alloy are indicative of an early and unusual style informed by Newari craftsmen working in Tibet, shared by examples published by von Schroeder in Buddhist Sculptures in Tibet, Vol.II, Hong Kong, 2003, pp.1156-9, nos.305D-E & 306E, and one sold at Bonhams, New York, 13 March 2017, lot 3024.
Provenance
Collection of Ben Meulenbeld, former Curator of the Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam, 1970s-2013
Marcel Nies Oriental Art, Antwerp
Acquired from the above at TEFAF Maastricht, March 2014