SWAT VALLEY OR KASHMIR, 6TH/7TH CENTURY

Details

A Small Gray-Green Chlorite Figure of Skanda
Swat Valley or Kashmir, 6th/7th Century
Finely carved standing on a waisted plinth holding the spear and cockerel, wearing a short dhoti and a dagger around the waist, his face carved with aquiline nose and arched brows beneath long wavy hair tied in a topknot, flanked by his peacock mount with full display of feathers forming a mandorla
5¼ in. (13.5 cm) high

Literature

Spink, Legacies of Ancient Civilisations: A Selection of Indian & South-East Asian Works of Art, 1996, cat. no. 12

Special notice

This lot is offered subject to a reserve, which is the confidential minimum price below which the lot will not be sold.

Lot Essay

For another slightly larger Gandharan example, in the British Museum, see S. Czuma, Kushan Sculpture: Images from Early India, 1985, cat. no. 93. While this was often referred to as an 'Armed Warrior Holding Fowl', the spear and cockerel in both cases are distinctive attributes of Skanda, also referred to as Skanda Kumara, being a youthful representation. The plain dhoti versus scale armor is more characteristic for the Swat Valley.

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