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Lot Essay
This elegant bronze represents White Tara, the bodhisattva of compassion and longevity, who is believed to have emanated from the eye of Avalokitesvara. In Buddhist thought, White Tara embodies transcendent wisdom and perfect purity, serving as a source of healing and protection. Her serene presence contrasts with the wrathful deities of Vajrayana practice, offering a visual and spiritual counterbalance within the tantric pantheon.
The figure is shown in a graceful tribhaṅga pose, her right hand extended in varada mudra, the gesture of charity and bestowal of boons. Her left hand delicately holds the stem of a lotus that blooms at her shoulder, a symbol of purity and spiritual awakening. The slender torso and high, rounded breasts, partially veiled by a barely discernible scarf, reflect the refined Newar aesthetic characteristic of the Licchavi and Thakuri periods.
Her adornments are rendered with exceptional detail: a tall three-leaf crown, necklace, armbands, and belt buckle inset with red glass beads. The dhoti is richly patterned with sweeping horizontal bands dividing rows of rosettes, prominently displayed across her thighs. The flexed posture is accentuated by the pleated cloth trailing from her left leg, which splays elegantly at the ankle.
Early Nepalese bronzes of this period are exceedingly rare and seldom appear on the market. A comparable figure of Tara from the Alice Getty Collection was sold at Christie’s New York, 17 October 2001, lot 65. . For related stylistic features, see a figure of Vasudhara in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, illustrated in P. Pal, Art of Nepal, 1985, p.101, which shares similar jewelled tiara, armlets, and pendants. The voluptuous modelling of the present figure suggests a date close to the 11th century, while comparison may also be drawn with a later 12th–13th century Nepalese Tara in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1982.220.1) and a another example preserved at the Newark Museum (inv. 20.453A,B).
The figure is shown in a graceful tribhaṅga pose, her right hand extended in varada mudra, the gesture of charity and bestowal of boons. Her left hand delicately holds the stem of a lotus that blooms at her shoulder, a symbol of purity and spiritual awakening. The slender torso and high, rounded breasts, partially veiled by a barely discernible scarf, reflect the refined Newar aesthetic characteristic of the Licchavi and Thakuri periods.
Her adornments are rendered with exceptional detail: a tall three-leaf crown, necklace, armbands, and belt buckle inset with red glass beads. The dhoti is richly patterned with sweeping horizontal bands dividing rows of rosettes, prominently displayed across her thighs. The flexed posture is accentuated by the pleated cloth trailing from her left leg, which splays elegantly at the ankle.
Early Nepalese bronzes of this period are exceedingly rare and seldom appear on the market. A comparable figure of Tara from the Alice Getty Collection was sold at Christie’s New York, 17 October 2001, lot 65. . For related stylistic features, see a figure of Vasudhara in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, illustrated in P. Pal, Art of Nepal, 1985, p.101, which shares similar jewelled tiara, armlets, and pendants. The voluptuous modelling of the present figure suggests a date close to the 11th century, while comparison may also be drawn with a later 12th–13th century Nepalese Tara in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1982.220.1) and a another example preserved at the Newark Museum (inv. 20.453A,B).