RARE WOODEN PILLAR REPRESENTING A FEMININE DIVINITY
NEPAL, BEGINNING OF THE TIME MALLA, CIRCA XIIIEME CENTURY
She is standing in tribhanga, legs crossed on a rock, above a rishi. She is placed under a tree and holds the vina with both her hands. She is dressed in a sari and adorned with jewels. His face is serene, his eyes almond. His hair is dressed in a bun and adorned with a tiara; accidents.
Height: 95 cm. (37 3/8 in.), Base
Details
- Title : A RARE WOOD STRUT DEPICTING A FEMALE DEITY
- Classification : Sculpture
- Medium : Wood
- Country/ Geo-location : Nepal
- Period : EARLY MALLA PERIOD, CIRCA 13TH CENTURY
- Collection : Christies
- LOT : 365
- Post Lot Text : A RARE WOOD STRUT DEPICTING A FEMALE DEITY NEPAL, EARLY MALLA PERIOD, CIRCA 13TH CENTURY
- Lot Essay : This finely sculpted bracket (tunala) is a characteristic example found in a typical Nepalese temple from about the 13th century. These cantilevered roof struts are often carved with celestial female figures (devata) holding a branch or the vina and dancing beneath a flowering tree on top of a rishi or hermit sage, who in this case is clutching his beard, and placed on a stylized rock design. This celestial maiden type goes back to the yakshis of ancient Indian incarnations of abundance. These figures were often associated with trees and their touch was believed to bring the trees into flower. This is a particular exquisite example of early Newari woodcarving, with its volume and pose very well realized.
- Price realised : EUR 49,500
- Estimate : EUR 20,000 - EUR 30,000
- Provenance : Private collection, London, late 1990s