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Lot Essay
Parnashavari, also known as the "Forest Goddess," or the "Wild Leafy One," belongs to the Kriya class of tantra and is specifically invoked to fight disease and epidemics. Depicted with three smiling faces and six arms, she is adorned with leaves, symbolizing her connection to the world of nature, similar to a yakshi.
Compare with a slightly earlier gilt bronze figure of Parnashavari from the Collection of Ann and Gilbert H. Kinney, see O. Czaja and A. Proser, Golden Visions of Densatil: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery, 2014, p.120, cat.no.24. As with the present figure, the Densatil goddess displays an expression and posture which is at once friendly while subtly suggesting an inner ferocity. In both examples, the goddess is depicted wearing her customary blouse of leaves and a jeweled skirt. Another example from the Capital Museum in Beijing (HAR item no.59828) depicts a slightly more rotund goddess, with the same distinctive dress and demeanor.
The rounded, sensual modeling, rich gilding and presence of turquoise embellishments of the present work suggest it may have been fashioned by Newar artists in Tibet. It is possible that, like the Densatil and Capital Museum works, the present figure could have links to Densatil Monastery and the surrounding region, which produced some of the finest and most prized bronze sculpture in Himalayan art history.
Compare with a slightly earlier gilt bronze figure of Parnashavari from the Collection of Ann and Gilbert H. Kinney, see O. Czaja and A. Proser, Golden Visions of Densatil: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery, 2014, p.120, cat.no.24. As with the present figure, the Densatil goddess displays an expression and posture which is at once friendly while subtly suggesting an inner ferocity. In both examples, the goddess is depicted wearing her customary blouse of leaves and a jeweled skirt. Another example from the Capital Museum in Beijing (HAR item no.59828) depicts a slightly more rotund goddess, with the same distinctive dress and demeanor.
The rounded, sensual modeling, rich gilding and presence of turquoise embellishments of the present work suggest it may have been fashioned by Newar artists in Tibet. It is possible that, like the Densatil and Capital Museum works, the present figure could have links to Densatil Monastery and the surrounding region, which produced some of the finest and most prized bronze sculpture in Himalayan art history.