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Buddha Sakyamuni Thailand, Kingdom of Lan Na circa 1500 Bronze, cast in the lost wax method, traces of gilding height 37 cm |
The historical Buddha, Sakyamuni, is the Buddha of compassion who, having achieved the highest evolutionary perfection, turns suffering into happiness for all living beings. He was born around 560 bce between the hills of southern Nepal and the Rapti River. His father was a raja who ruled a north-eastern Indian province, the district of the holy Ganges river. When he was about seventeen the young prince married Yashodhara and they had a son named Rahula. At the age of twenty-nine he left his life of luxury, feeling compelled to purify his body by ridding himself of earthly impulses and temptations, and to make it an instrument of the mind. Fine curls cover the head and ushnisha of this life-size portrait of the historical Buddha. The elongated earlobes were caused by the heavy earrings he wore in his youth and they reflect Buddha’s royal origin. The Kingdom of Lan Na in northern Thailand was one of the most powerful Thai states. The cultural centre was Chieng Mai, founded in 1327. Influenced by the Indian Pala style, the Buddha images originating from the kingdom were created with great imagination and human character and represent a classic Thai style. The Lan Na style is exemplified in the arched eyebrows, downcast eyes, contoured lips, the chin defined by an incised line, the oval face, and the tight curls. Comparison with dated Buddha images bearing inscriptions allow this portrait to be dated to the late fifteenth century or the first half of the sixteenth [1]. This finely cast and noble head of Buddha is a classic example of the Lan Na style. Treated with a lively imagination, it exemplifies the Thai masters’ artistic and technical skill in bronze casting. Finely features and pure volumes create their own aesthetic, revealing a great Buddha with a human character and serene expression. Provenance: Formerly in the collection of Alain Rudin, Switzerland. [1] A.B. Griswold, Dated Buddha Images of Northern Siam, Atribus Asiae, Switzerland, 1957. |