TIBET, 16TH CENTURY

Dragpa Gyaltsen (1147-1216) was the Fifth Throne Holder of Sakya and the third son of Sachen Kunga Nyingpo. Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyaltsen Pal Zangpo (1182-1251) was his nephew and immediate successor. This work and the three thangkas in lot 115 exhibit stylistic tendencies pertaining to outlying areas such as Dolpo or Mustang. Whereas in the main centers or monasteries, one patron may have commissioned a full set of lineage thangkas, the existence of different donor portraits at the bottom of each of these thangkas denote that different families sponsored individual paintings. These thangkas could be part of a set ranging from ten to fifteen paintings depicting a horizontal lineage of monks and a vertical lineage of deities or teachings (such as the Guhyasamaja Tantra or the Chakrasamvara Tantra, for instance). The paintings were also worked on by a number of different hands. The master of the atelier customarily painted the first few thangkas with the students finishing the rest of the set.