PLAQUE DE PANJARANATA MAHAKALA EN LAPIS LAZULI AVEC MONTURE EN ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉ
TIBET, LA PLAQUE, XIIIE/XIVE SIÈCLE ; LA MONTURE, VERS XIXE SIÈCLE
An inscription in Tibetan on the reverse of the plaque: 
'Om Mani Hum'. 
Himalayan Art Resources item no. 1811
11.8 cm (4 5/8 in.) high 
Footnotes:
A LAPIS LAZULI AND GILT COPPER ALLOY MOUNTED PLAQUE OF PANJARANATA MAHAKALA 
TIBET, THE PLAQUE, 13TH/14TH CENTURY; THE MOUNT, CIRCA 19TH CENTURY 

Provenance
Private French Collection

Holding a flaying knife and skull cup and nestling a club in the crook of his arms, Panjaranata Mahakala is the fierce guardian of the Hevajra tantra cycles within the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. Despite Mahakala's violent iconography, symbolizing the annihilation of karmic defilements, the sculptor refrains from depicting him with gruesome features. Instead, the artist envisions an approachable dwarf-like figure with a subdued grimace, emphasizing the deity's ultimately protective nature. 

As the chief protector deity of the Sakya order, the Mongol Empire, and Khubilai Khan's personal god of war, Panjaranata Mahakala was popularized during the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368). The Mongols attributed many military victories, including their defeat of the Southern Song dynasty (1127-79), to their summoning of Mahakala with the assistance of Sakya hierarchs. The present use of lapis lazuli reflects a shared Mongol and Tibetan penchant for carving in semi-precious materials, enabled by the Yuan's control of trade and territories where they could be sourced. In early Buddhist practice, lapis lazuli was regarded as one of the 'seven jewels' (saptaratna) believed to be the Historical Buddha's earthly remains transformed through the fires of cremation. Lapis continued to be a highly prized material throughout antiquity, as exemplified by the present work's later mounting and diligent preservation.

Comparatively, the deity's squat figural treatment and more pleasant affect, here, reflect the manner in which Panjaranata Mahakala was represented in Yuan Tibet and China during the late 13th and early 14th centuries. This is demonstrated by a limestone relief carving of Krodha Vajrapani at the Feilai Feng grottoes in Hangzhou (HAR 73235), as well as two other Tibetan steles of Panjaranata Mahakala, one of which is dated 1292 in the Musée Guimet, Paris (see both in, Watt et al., The World of Khubilai Khan: Chinese Art in the Yuan dynasty, 2010, pp. 108-9, nos. 141-2). The lot's attribution to this formative period in Tibetan art history is further supported by the close borrowing of the lotus base from northeastern Indian precedents of the Pala period (8th-12th centuries), such as a stele of Jnana Mahakala in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (fig. 1; M.71.110.3).

For the figures listed in this essay, please refer to our printed or digital catalogue.

青金石鑲銅鎏金座寶帳大黑天像
西藏 十三/十四世紀（鑲座約十九世紀）

來源
法國私人珍藏

此尊手握鉞刀和嘎巴拉碗、臂彎處持梃杖的雕像為寶帳大黑天，乃藏傳佛教薩迦派喜金剛密續部的忿怒護法。儘管大黑天的兇猛肖像象征消除業障，藝術家卻避免以可怖的特征描繪寶帳大黑天，反而將他構想成一尊可親近的矮胖形象，以柔和的鬼臉展現神祇的終極護法本性。

作為薩迦派的主要護法神和忽必烈個人的戰神，寶帳大黑天在元朝（1279-1368年）是廣為流行的藝術題材。原因則為蒙古人將諸多戰功歸於在薩迦派協助下頂禮大黑天，如認為大黑天促成其戰勝南宋（1127–79年）等。此尊雕像用青金石，反映出其時蒙古與西藏共同的、對用半寶石雕刻神像的熱衷，而元朝對這些石料產地與貿易之控制，令此偏好更加成為可能。在早期佛教修行中，青金石被視作「七寶」之一，被認為是歷史上佛陀火化後的舍利轉化而來。青金石在古代始終是一種昂貴材料，本尊造像後來鑲嵌以底座並得以精心保存即是證明。

以藝術風格而言，此尊造像的矮胖化處理以及憨態喜人之感，正為十三世紀末至十四世紀初元代漢藏兩地佛教藝術風格之代表。此風格顯見於杭州飛來峰之石灰岩忿怒金剛手浮雕（喜馬拉雅藝術資源網 73235號 ），以及另外兩尊寶帳大黑天藏地石碑——其一藏於巴黎吉美博物館，造於1292年（二者皆著錄於Watt等著，《The World of Khubilai Khan: Chinese Art in the Yuan dynasty》，2010年，頁108-9，圖141-2）。此外，該造像蓮座設計與源自印度東北部之帕拉時期（八至十二世紀）極為相似，如洛杉磯郡立藝術博物館所藏大黑天石碑所示（圖1，編號M.71.110.3），進一步佐證其出自西藏藝術風格形成時期之判斷。

關於文中所提及之參考圖，請參閱此場拍賣之電子或紙質圖錄。
Lot to be sold without reserve.
This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: *
* VAT on imported items at a reduced rate of 5.5% on the hammer price and the prevailing rate on buyer's premium if the item remains in EU.

TVA sur les objets importés à un taux réduit de 5.5% sur le prix d'adjudication et un taux en vigueur sur la prime d'achat dans le cas où l'objet reste dans l'Union Européenne.
For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

Very good condition overall, with minor wear resulting in a soft and smooth surface, consistent with the object's age and handling over time. Minor erosion to the back, possibly due to some exposure to the elements. Remains of gold pigment in the recessed areas of the figure's jewelry and red pigment in the figure's hair and in the recessed areas of the inscription at the back. The piece has been custom fitted to a later but not modern copper alloy mounting that is in very good condition with the partial loss of one semi-precious inset stone. Traces of embedded dust and smoky black residue from exposure to temple lamps within the culture and remains of red pigment at the mounting's back.
Please contact Alvina Ang (Alvina.Ang@bonhams.com) for related condition report images and video.