Description
AN ANDESITE HEAD OF BUDDHA, INDONESIA, CENTRAL JAVA, 9TH -10TH CENTURY
Finely carved with bow-shaped mouth and downcast eyes centered by a raised urna, flanked by pendulous earlobes, the hair in snail-shell curls over the conical ushnisha.
Provenance: From an Austrian private collector.
Condition: Losses, wear and extensive weathering, overall consistent with the high age of this statue. The condition can be seen in detail on the various images available at .
Weight: 15.5 kg (including the base)
Dimensions: Height 31 cm (the head) and 39 cm (with the base)
This remarkable head resembles the manifold transcendental Buddhas that adorn the Buddhist monument of Borobudur in Central Java, erected under the Sailendra Dynasty in the early years of the 9th century. The porous texture of the volcanic stone expertly fashioned into serene expressions manifest a sense of sincerity and bliss characteristic of classical Javanese sculpture. The great stupa of Borobudur is a three-dimensional mandala that maps the cosmic universe in five ascending terraces. The large-scale Buddhas at its pinnacle represent the highest levels of transcendental wisdom.
Modern base. (2)