A THANGKA OF TSONGKHAPA EMANATING FROM THE HEART OF MAITREYA
Tibet, 18th-19th century. Distemper and gold on cloth. Seated in dhyanasana on a lotus base set in a bank of clouds with his hands in dharmachakramudra, clad in heavy robes and flanked by lotus blossoms at the shoulder supporting the sword and book, the face with serene expression surmounted by a pointed cap and backed by a nimbus. With a silk brocade frame.

Provenance: From a European private collection, assembled in the 1960s and 1970s.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, creasing, soiling, few minuscule losses. The textile mounting further with tears, loose threads, and minor losses.

Dimensions: Size incl. mounting 128 x 73 cm, Image size 65 x 45 cm

The founding triad of the Gelugpa Order of Tibetan Buddhism manifests from the heart of Maitreya upon a billowing cloud at the center of this uplifting thangka. The order's founder, Tsongkhapa, sits enthroned, joined by his successors as Ganden Tripa (the spiritual leader of the Gelugpas), Gyeltsab Darma Rinchen (1364-1432) and Khedrup Geleg Palzang (1385-1438). Below them, buffalo-head Yama Dharmaraja is flanked by Magzor Gyalmo with her mule on the left, and Dorje Shugden riding a snow lion on the right.

Je Tsongkhapa (1357-1419) is the founder of the Gelug order of Tibetan Buddhism, the "newest" of the extant schools. Tsongkhapa studied the traditions of the Nyingma, Sakya, Kagyue, and particularly Kadam lineages, and codified certain principles of all of them in the Gelug tradition. Today, the order is the most popularly followed in Tibet, with its head, the Dalai Lama, seen as the spiritual leader of the country.

The wisdom-sword and sutra that blossom by his shoulders are attributes of Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, with whom Tsongkhapa is associated. In visual allegory, they arise from Tsongkhapa's hands as he displays the gesture of 'Advancing the Dharma'. Above him, Maitreya holds court within Tushita Heaven.

The painting is of exceptional artistic quality and can be dated to the late 18th or early 19th centuries. The horizontality and ornate scrolling of the clouds and symmetry of the composition are hallmarks of the period and reveal an indebtedness to certain influences in Chinese painting.

Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related Tibetan thangka of Tsongkhapa, also dated 18th-19th century, at Christie's New York in Indian and Southeast Asian Art on 19 March 2013, lot 395, sold for USD 21,250. Compare also a related Tibetan thangka, also depicting Tsongkhapa emanating from the heart of Maitreya, dated to the 19th century, but of larger size, at Bonhams Hong Kong in Images of Devotion on 2 December 2020, lot 1031, bought-in at an estimate of HKD 500,000-700,000.

宗喀巴唐卡
西藏, 十八至十九世紀，布面金彩膠彩。上師穩坐畫面中央，頭戴格魯派黃色的桃形僧帽，身披勾描精緻的僧衣，衣著裝飾工整瑰麗，顯示出尊貴的身份和高深的智慧。雙手當胸結說法印，左右肩花上置經書和寶劍，跏跌坐於蓮台寶座之上，粉色的蓮瓣嬌美逼真。周身有頭光、身光和圓形的彩虹大光圈。

來源：歐洲私人收藏，購於1960-1970年代。
品相：狀況非常好，有輕微的磨損、摺痕、污跡，少量微小的缺損。唐卡裝裱織物撕裂，絲線鬆動和輕微損失。

尺寸：縂128 x 73 厘米，畫面 65 x 45 厘米

拍賣結果比較：比較一件西藏宗喀巴唐卡，同樣為十八至十九世紀，見紐約佳士得Indian and Southeast Asian Art 2013年3月19日 lot 395, 售價USD 21,250 ；一件同樣為西藏宗喀巴唐卡，十九世紀，但尺寸更大，見香港邦翰思Images of Devotion 2020年12月2日 lot 1031, 估價HKD 500,000-700,000。