AN IMPORTANT 'MUSICIANS AND ATTENDANTS' SANDSTONE RELIEF FRAGMENT, 10TH CENTURY
Central India. The two standing attendants wearing princely attire, the larger bearded figure holding a mirror and wearing a turban, the figure beside him with the right hand raised in abhaya mudra, his left holding a lotus. Two cross-legged musicians are seated at the attendants' feet, playing a harp and vina respectively, each with a smiling expression, the harp player wearing a turban. A devotee is seated in the branches above them.

Provenance: Sotheby's London, 13 June 1988, lot 259 (illustrated on the front cover). An English private collection, acquired from the above. Wilkinsons Auctioneers, Doncaster, 23 February 2002. A private collector, acquired from the above.
Expert Authentication: A possible indication of dating is the depiction of a bow harp which, according to the previous owner's conversation with Dr. John Ralston Marr, was seen in early India but had disappeared by the 10th century. John Ralston Marr is a British Indologist, writer and a former member of faculty at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He is known as a scholar of Carnatic music and Tamil literature, and is the author of several major publications.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age yet remarkably well preserved overall. Extensive wear, losses, signs of weathering and erosion, few structural cracks. Remnants of pigment. Small nicks, dents and light scratches.

Weight: 78.9 kg
Dimensions: Height 88 cm (excl. stand) and 95 cm (incl. stand)

Mounted to a modern stand. (2)