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Lot Essay
The three-faced, eight-armed Ushnishavijaya is a goddess of longevity and is associated with the fulfillment of earthly desires. For this reason, she is often invoked in old age ceremonies such as Bhimaratha (see lot 435). She has three faces with fierce, serene, and benign expressions, said to carry the attributes of three goddesses. Here, she is seated in a meditative pose with both legs folded and the soles of her feet visible. Her six hands are held in various mudras, as she carries a vishvavajra, a small figure of Amitabha, and a longevity vase.
While close diplomatic ties between Tibet and Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) China had encouraged the exchange of motifs in the casting of Buddhist images, a far greater Tibeto-Chinese artistic collaboration was witnessed after the founding of the Qing Dynasty in the seventeeth century. The Qing emperors relied heavily on the support of other foreign ethnic groups within China, particularly Tibetans and Mongolians, for their reign. The Kangxi Emperor (r.1661-1722) became an important propagator of Tibetan Buddhism and founded important monasteries with Mongolian and Tibetan workshops at Beijing, an endeavor and tradition of artistic patronage that continued under the Yongzheng (r.1722-1735) and Qianlong (r. 1735-1796) Emperors.
Ushnishavijaya and her iconography are entirely drawn from the Tibetan pantheon; however, stylistic elements of the present lot closely associate it with the Qing period of China, when Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese art and culture were closely intertwined. Such elements include an overall richly gilt surface, smooth contours of the waist and detailed casting of the figure’s flowing robes, ribbons and sashes. Like most works produced in China during this period, the back side of the lotus base is left decorated; comparable Tibetan bronzes generally had bases fully executed in the round.
Compare to a smaller figure of Ushnishavijaya in the State Hermitage Collection, Leningrad, illustrated by M.M. Rhie and R.A.F. Thurman in Wisdom and Compassion. The Sacred Art of Tibet, New York, 1991, no. 124. The two figures share similar modeling of the faces, robes, and jeweled ornaments. The present lot, however, is of a superb size, with few examples comparing in presence.
While close diplomatic ties between Tibet and Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) China had encouraged the exchange of motifs in the casting of Buddhist images, a far greater Tibeto-Chinese artistic collaboration was witnessed after the founding of the Qing Dynasty in the seventeeth century. The Qing emperors relied heavily on the support of other foreign ethnic groups within China, particularly Tibetans and Mongolians, for their reign. The Kangxi Emperor (r.1661-1722) became an important propagator of Tibetan Buddhism and founded important monasteries with Mongolian and Tibetan workshops at Beijing, an endeavor and tradition of artistic patronage that continued under the Yongzheng (r.1722-1735) and Qianlong (r. 1735-1796) Emperors.
Ushnishavijaya and her iconography are entirely drawn from the Tibetan pantheon; however, stylistic elements of the present lot closely associate it with the Qing period of China, when Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese art and culture were closely intertwined. Such elements include an overall richly gilt surface, smooth contours of the waist and detailed casting of the figure’s flowing robes, ribbons and sashes. Like most works produced in China during this period, the back side of the lotus base is left decorated; comparable Tibetan bronzes generally had bases fully executed in the round.
Compare to a smaller figure of Ushnishavijaya in the State Hermitage Collection, Leningrad, illustrated by M.M. Rhie and R.A.F. Thurman in Wisdom and Compassion. The Sacred Art of Tibet, New York, 1991, no. 124. The two figures share similar modeling of the faces, robes, and jeweled ornaments. The present lot, however, is of a superb size, with few examples comparing in presence.