A MON-DVARAVATI SANDSTONE HEAD OF A BUDDHIST DEVOTEE
Thailand, 8th-9th century. The head is adorned with a three-pronged headdress and a jeweled diadem, the expression of the face is serene with the eyes closed in an attitude of devotion and mediation, with a broad nose and full lips flanked by small ears.

Provenance: Josefina Enriqueta Valentina de Albuquerque, Buenos Aires, 1930s, and thence by descent in the same family. New York private collection, acquired from the above. Sotheby's, 19 March 2008, lot 249, bought-in at an estimate of USD 15,000-20,000. French private collection, acquired from the above in an after-sale transaction. Two old collector's labels to the reverse of the base, one (erroneously) inscribed 'Masque de divinite Cham', the other a fragment.
Condition: Superb condition commensurate with age, extensive wear, losses, and nicks here and there. Good, naturally grown patina.

Weight: 3,267 g (total)
Dimensions Height 23.5 cm (excl. base) and 35 cm (incl. base)

Mounted on an old wood base. (2)

Expert's note: While there is great variation within the Mon-Dvaravati tradition, the sensitivity paid to the modeling of the fine facial features in the present lot is in keeping with the period's focus on the purity and fluidity of form. As expressed by Jean Boisselier in The Heritage of Thai Sculpture, 1975, page 73, “The school of Dvaravati may stand alongside the great Buddhist artistic traditions of India, so enduring were its innovations and so persuasive its influence on most of the art of Southeast Asia.”

Literature comparison: Compare to an attendant figure in a Buddhist plaque illustrated in Hiram W. Woodward, The Sacred Sculpture of Thailand: The Alexander B. Griswold Collection at The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, 1997, p. 51, fig. 44.