A MONUMENTAL AND IMPORTANT SANDSTONE FIGURE OF DANCING HEVAJRA, BAPHUON PERIOD, 11TH CENTURY

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A MONUMENTAL AND IMPORTANT SANDSTONE FIGURE OF DANCING HEVAJRA, BAPHUON PERIOD, 11TH CENTURY This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005: “No. 188, LA 1973, A. Maynard, Khmer Baphoun 11th c. stone dancing Hevajra.” Gallery price: EUR 280,000 or approx. EUR 467,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing. Expert’s note: Many bronze images of Hevajra were made during the reign of Jayavarman VII lasting between 1181 and 1218, but Khmer sandstone sculptures of Hevajra are extremely rare, and no example dating back to the Baphuon period and as well preserved as the present lot is recorded in public or private collections, making this magnificent and imposing sculpture extremely rare. Khmer Empire. Exquisitely carved, the eight-headed deity shown in a dynamic posture, with one leg raised and multiple arms radiating around the torso, each supporting diminutive anthropomorphic figures. The figure clad in a short pleated sampot secured with a sash at the waist, and embellished with a large jeweled necklace around the neck. The eight heads are arranged in three superimposed tiers, each bearing a serene expression with almond-shaped eyes beneath gently arched eyebrows, a broad nose, and full lips, all flanked by long, pendulous earlobes, and surmounted by a richly detailed tiara. Important Note: For essential information on the Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger Dimensions: Height 137.2 cm (excl. stand) With an associated modern stand. (2) Hevajra was an important figure signaling the practice of Buddhist rituals. King Jayavarman VII placed particular emphasis on Hevajra during consecration rituals and set up a colossal stone sculpture of dancing Hevajra at the east gate of his fortified city in the Khmer capital at Angkor. During the reign of Jayavarman VII, tantric Buddhism became public and widespread, practiced together with other more mainstream forms of Buddhism, Hinduism, and ancestor worship. According to the Hevajra tantra, the deity is holding humanoid figures that represent the cosmis aspects of Hevajra in his left hands, which are the Indic Gods of Wealth, Death, Sun, Moon, Fire, Wind, Water and Earth. His right hands are holding seven animals and one human, including a bull, lion, cat, camel, goat, horse, and elephant. It would appear that some hand-held attributes of Khmer Hevajra images were changed to match the local fauna, such is the case for the camel which sometimes was substituted for a tiger as camels were unknown in many areas of Southeast Asia. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related pink sandstone bust of Hevajra, Thailand, 13th century, 54.6 cm high, in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, accession number M.81.6. Compare a related sandstone bust of Hevajra, dated late 12th-early 13th century, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 36.96.4. Compare a related bronze figure of eight-headed dancing Hevajra, dated 12th-13th century, 30.8 cm high, in the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Berlin, identification number II 1138. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Zacke, Vienna, 11 April 2024, lot 194 Price: EUR 49,400 or approx. EUR 51,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject. Note the different material and smaller size (39 cm).

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