Lot 29. A white stucco head of a boddhisatva, Ancient region of Gandhara, circa 4th century; 28cm (11in) high. (2).. Estimate 15 000 € - 20 000€. Courtesy Bonhams.
Finely modelled with elaborate turban arranged in thick pleated bands highlighted in the remains of red colour, secured at the front by a faceted jewel. His meditative and slightly stern expression is amplified by the arched eyebrows above downcast eyes with black painted pupils, long aquiline nose, red-coloured straight lips and elongated earlobes with circular earrings, stand.
Provenance: Christie's Amsterdam, 16 December 2003, lot 20
Jean-Pierre Rousset, Paris (1936-2021), acquired at the above sale.
Note: Encompassing Northeastern Afghanistan and Northwestern Pakistan, the ancient region of Gandhara benefited from the unique hybridity of early cultures. Displaying in its sculpture elements informed by the Mediterranean, Near East India, and Central Asia, its artistic products are wonderfully cosmopolitan.
The elaborate turban worn by this handsome Bodhisattva has no direct comparison to Indian or Sasanian models but retains elements of large faceted beads, thick fabric bands, represented in other examples published in Tissot, Gandhara, Paris, 1985, figs.171-183 and an example in the British Museum (1937,0716.159) also missing the top section. Also compare to a bodhisattva head in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1977.191) and Los Angeles County Museum of Art published by P.Pal, Indian Sculpture, vol.I, Los Angeles, 1986, pp.168-169, no.S46.
Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris. The Robert and Jean-Pierre Rousset Collection of Asian Art: A Century of Collecting - Part 1. Paris, 25 october 2022.