A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF MANJUSHRI

18TH CENTURY

Details

A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF MANJUSHRI
18TH CENTURY
The bodhisattva sits in dhyanasana on a double-lotus base, holding aloft a flaming sword in his raised right hand and a lotus stem in his left. He is clad in a voluminous dhoti and adorned with sashes and jewelry. The face is serene in expression and surmounted by a foliate tiara in front of the braided chignon.
13 ½ in. (34.3 cm.) high

Lot Essay

This impressive and dynamic gilt-bronze figure of Manjushri is rare for the virtuosity of the casting technique and the expressive vitality of the figure itself. Displaying a fine attention to detail in the treatment of the robes and jewelry, the figure is also depicted with supple proportions that characterize the finest 18th century Chinese figures. Compare the modeling of the figure in particular with the famous gilt-bronze figure of a bodhisattva in the collection of the Newark Museum (50.146), illustrated by V. Reynolds in From the Sacred Realm: Treasures of Tibetan Art from the Newark Museum, New York, 1999, p. 226, cat. no. 130.

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