A gilt bronze stupa

TIBET, 15TH CENTURY

Details

A gilt bronze stupa
Tibet, 15th Century
The solidly cast plinth with lotiform rim, each side with a vajra flanked by lotus blossoms and supported by frontal lions, surmounted by flaming jewels and a figure of Achala striding in alidhasana, with the dome above on a double-lotus base and adorned with beaded garlands, with Ushnishavijaya flanked by bodhisattvas within a niche with peacock and Garuda torana, surmounted by the stepped harmika and tapering parasol with a festooned canopy
8¼ in. (21 cm.) high

Provenance

With Spink & Son, Ltd., London, by 1995
Acquired by present owner in March 2000

Literature

Spink and Son, The Mirror of Mind: Art of Vajrayana Buddhism, 1995, cat. no. 18

Exhibited

The Mirror of Mind: Art of Vajrayana Buddhism, Spink & Son, Ltd., London, June 9-30th, 1995, cat. no. 18

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Lot Essay

In Buddhist philosophy, life, death, and subsequent rebirth exist along a continuum, thus it follows that the stupa, or reliquary mound, is depicted here housing Ushnishavijaya, a goddess associated with long life. For related examples, see G. Mullin, Female Buddhas, 2003, pp. 109-110.

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