GANDHARAN TERRACOTTA HEAD OF A BODHISATTVA - TL TESTED

Ca. 200-400 AD
A finely modelled terracotta head of a bodhisattva. A bodhisattva was originally conceived as Gautama on his path to enlightenment before he became the Buddha, but by this point, it was conceived as anyone who was in the process of reaching enlightenment, or who had reached it but, forsaking nirvana, chose to remain in this world to teach others how to reach it too. His finely modelled face is decorated with the thin wavy moustache fashionable in Gandharan sculpture. A chip on his forehead shows an urna that would have been there once, the dot that represented the third eye. He has idealised features including a rounded face, downcast eyes, aquiline nose, and pendulous pierced earlobes. Wavy hair drifts down at his temples from a circlet decorated with rosettes, above which would have been an elaborate headdress. Gandhara sat at the crossroad of civilisations on the Silk Road, drawing on influences from across the world, and its earlier conquest by Alexander the Great had left a legacy of Greek artisans and enduring Hellenistic style. This makes Gandharan art distinct for its use of Buddhist themes and iconography with some of the delicate naturalism of Greek sculpture. This piece has been precisely dated by means of a Thermo Luminescence analysis carried out by Ralf Kotalla, an independent German Laboratory. The samples collected date the piece to the period reflected in its style, whilst also showing no modern trace elements. The TL certificate with its full report will accompany this lot.
Size: L:340mm / W:260mm ; 11.8kg
Provenance: From the collection of a London gentleman; formerly acquired in early 2000s in Belgium; previously in 1970s European collection.
Estimate: GBP 1500 - 3000