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A FINE AND LARGE TIBETAN GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF YAMANTAKA AND VAJRAVETALI, 18TH CENTURY
The powerfully modelled sculpture depicts Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, in ecstatic union with his consort The powerfully modelled sculpture depicts Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, in ecstatic union with his consort Vajravetali. The composition is dominated by a ferocious buffalo head with flaming hair, encircled by six wrathful faces and surmounted by additional heads, culminating in that of Manjushri.
Vajrabhairava, the "Adamantine Anger" and destroyer of ignorance and death, is a principal yidam of the Geluk sect founded by Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), which later gained prominence at the Ming and Qing courts. Closely associated with imperial authority, and linked to the Dalai Lama as well as the Qing emperors—both regarded as manifestations of Manjushri—this formidable deity came to symbolize both spiritual power and imperial legitimacy.
Two similar examples see Sotheby, Hong Kong, 3 April 2018, lot 3679 and Sotheby's New York, 22 March 2018, lot 1050.
十八世紀 西藏銘鎮金閣鬼敵金剣與金剣璶伽母雙身像
33.5cm high
Sold for $20,000
Lot 64
The powerfully modelled sculpture depicts Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, in ecstatic union with his consort The powerfully modelled sculpture depicts Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, in ecstatic union with his consort Vajravetali. The composition is dominated by a ferocious buffalo head with flaming hair, encircled by six wrathful faces and surmounted by additional heads, culminating in that of Manjushri.
Vajrabhairava, the "Adamantine Anger" and destroyer of ignorance and death, is a principal yidam of the Geluk sect founded by Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), which later gained prominence at the Ming and Qing courts. Closely associated with imperial authority, and linked to the Dalai Lama as well as the Qing emperors—both regarded as manifestations of Manjushri—this formidable deity came to symbolize both spiritual power and imperial legitimacy.
Two similar examples see Sotheby, Hong Kong, 3 April 2018, lot 3679 and Sotheby's New York, 22 March 2018, lot 1050.
十八世紀 西藏銘鎮金閣鬼敵金剣與金剣璶伽母雙身像
33.5cm high
Estimate $20,000 - $30,000
Overall in good condition.
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