A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF AMITABHA


MONGOLIA, ZANABAZAR SCHOOL, 17TH CENTURYHimalayan Art Resources item no.61616 13.5 cm (5 1/4 in.) high
|蒙古 扎納巴扎爾風格 十七世紀 銅鎏金阿彌陀佛像Amitabha Buddha presides over the West and embodies Buddhahood's transcendence over the karmic poison desire. He is also revered just as much as Shakyamuni in East Asia as the central figure in Pure Land Buddhism, a major Mahayana subdivision. Pure Land advances an array of heavenly realms and teaches methods by which one may be reborn in one of these paradises. The cult of Amitabha in China can be traced back to at least 2nd century CE, when the Sukhavativyuha Sutra was first translated into Chinese. This heavily cast bronze depicts Amitabha with a confidence idiomatic of the Zanabazar artistic school of Mongolia, founded in the 17th century by Jebstundampa Khutukhtu Zanabazar (1635-1723). His bold, minimal style is flawlessly executed. Compare the exacting lotus petals, patterned hems, and the well-proportioned body with a Zanabazar Buddha published in Ayurzana, Treasures of Mongolian Art, Ulaanbaatar, 2005, pp.2-3. Another was sold at Christie's, New York, 19 March 2013, lot 219.ProvenanceTarg Hansen, Copenhagen, 1970