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Thailand, reign of King Rama I-III, 1782-1851. Seated in ardha padmasana on a four-tiered triangular pedestal intricately decorated with geometric and floral designs. His right hand is lowered in bhumisparsha mudra while the left is held in dhyana mudra. He is dressed in a close-fitting sanghati lavishly decorated with diapered designs and floral roundels (pha lai). His face in a serene expression with heavy-lidded eyes, gently arched brows, prominent nose, and full lips forming a calm smile, flanked by long pendulous earlobes. The hair arranged in tight curls over the ushnisha surmounted by a separately cast flame finial. The figure sheltered beneath a large canopy in the form of a four-tiered reticulated parasol anchored to the back of the base.
Provenance: The Kienzle Family Collection, Stuttgart, Germany. Acquired between 1950 and 1985 by siblings Else (1912-2006), Reinhold (1917-2008), and Dr. Horst Kienzle (1924-2019), during their extensive travels in Asia. Subsequently inherited by Dr. Horst Kienzle and bequeathed to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, Germany. Released through museum deaccession in 2024. The Kienzle siblings were avid travelers and passionate collectors of Asian and Islamic art. During their travels, the Kienzle’s sought out and explored temples, monasteries, and markets, always trying to find the best pieces wherever they went, investing large sums of money and forging lasting relationships to ensure they could acquire them. Their fervor and success in this pursuit is not only demonstrated by their collection but further recorded in correspondences between Horst Kienzle and several noted dignitaries, businesses and individuals in Nepal and Ladakh. Their collection had gained renown by the 1970s, but the Kienzle’s stopped acquiring new pieces around 1985. Almost thirty years later, the collection was moved to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, opened by Peter Hardt in 2014. Before his death in 2019, Horst Kienzle bequeathed his entire property to Peter Hardt and legally adopted him as his son, who has been using the name Peter Kienzle-Hardt ever since.
Condition: Good condition with expected surface wear and casting irregularities, including few nicks and light scratches, small dents, rubbing and flaking to gilding, with remnants of lacquer and minor touchups.
Dimensions: Height 141 cm (excl. canopy) and 187 cm (incl. canopy)
Floral patterns are the most common designs on nineteenth-century patterned robes, owing to their association with royalty, as such patterns on articles of clothing were reserved for use among royalty and members of the court. It was, therefore, suitable for exalted figures such as Prince Siddhartha and the Buddha to be depicted in similar motifs. Other motifs such as patterns of small seated Buddhas or geometric shapes can also be found on robes of mid-nineteenth-century sculptures; they are, however, not as common (see Melody Rod-Ari, The Buddha as Sacred Siamese King, The Walters Art Museum Journal, vol. 73, 2018, pp. 25-34).
The canopy is a rare feature that closely relates to the Emerald Buddha, an image of the meditating Buddha considered the sacred palladium of Thailand, carved in the 15th century from green jasper and clothed in gold, enshrined beneath a similar canopy in the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) on the grounds of the Grand Palace in Bangkok. This image has played a central role in Thailand’s cultural and spiritual life for centuries. Early in the Bangkok period, the Emerald Buddha was occasionally paraded through the streets to protect the city from calamities like plague and cholera. This practice was discontinued during King Rama IV's reign as it was feared that the image could be damaged during the procession and the king's belief that “diseases are caused by germs, not by evil spirits or the displeasure of the Buddha”. The Emerald Buddha also marks the changing of the seasons in Thailand, with the king presiding over seasonal ceremonies. In a ritual held at the temple three times a year, the decoration of the statue is changed at the start of each of the three seasons. Rama I initiated this ritual for the hot and rainy seasons, and Rama III introduced the ritual for the winter. The robes and decorations which adorn the image represent those of monks and the king, depending on the season, while the king himself formally dresses as the Emerald Buddha.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related gilt-lacquered brass figure of Buddha, dated ca. 1900, 70 cm high, in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 54.2987. See further examples of gilt lacquered bronze figures of Buddha Shakyamuni illustrated by Melody Rod-Ari, The Buddha as Sacred Siamese King, The Walters Art Museum Journal, vol. 73, 2018, figs. 1-5.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 23 July 2020, lot 841
Price: USD 22,575 or approx. EUR 23,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt lacquer copper alloy figure of Buddha, Thailand, Rattanakosin period, 19th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar pose, robe, and face. Note the much smaller size (90 cm) as well as the missing flame, base, and canopy.
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