A FINE BRONZE FIGURE OF INFANT KRISHNA, SOUTH INDIA, 16TH-17TH CENTURY
A FINE BRONZE FIGURE OF INFANT KRISHNA, SOUTH INDIA, 16TH-17TH CENTURY
Finely cast, depicted holding his raised left leg in his right hand bringing his toe to his mouth, naked except for his makara kundala, rings, bangles, armlets, waistband, anklets, toe rings, and necklaces. His hair is also curled up and meticulously rendered. The upper back with a small aperture.
Provenance: Barrie M. Heaven, Adelaide, Australia, by 2008. A private collection in Australia, acquired from the above.
Barrie M. Heaven (1938-2021) was a prominent Adelaide-based dealer and collector who specialized in Indian and Islamic art. A discerning connoisseur and longstanding supporter of the arts in South Australia, he was also a substantial donor to the Art Gallery of South Australia, contributing significantly to the development of its collections.
Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear, casting irregularities, soil encrustations to the crevices. Overall with an almost entirely black patina.
Weight: 4.5 kg
Dimensions: Height 32.5 cm
Though he may appear as a mere child playfully sucking on his toes, Krishna is in fact an incarnation of the powerful god Vishnu. This devotional image portrays a vision the sage Markandeya once had, when he saw the infant lying on a banyan leaf floating in the cosmic ocean. When Krishna revealed his true form, it was the all-pervading Vishnu, resting on the primordial waters between cosmic eras, when he gives rise to the re-creation of the universe. The reclining position implies a banyan leaf which lends its name to this iconography- 'vatapatra' (banyan leaf) 'shayi' (reclining).
Literature comparison:
Compare a related smaller bronze figure of Krishna lying on a Banyan leaf, Karnataka, South India, 15th-16th century, 14 cm high, in the Asian Civilisations Museum, accession number 1994-05383. Compare a related smaller inlaid gilded copper alloy figure of cosmic Vishnu as infant Krishna, Tamil Nadu, dated to the 16th-17th century, 18.4 cm high, in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 54.3081.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby's Paris, 9 December 2021, lot 115
Price: EUR 10,710 or approx.
EUR 12,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze figure of infant Krishna India, 17th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar hair, adornments, and size (31 cm).
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
A FINE BRONZE FIGURE OF INFANT KRISHNA, SOUTH INDIA, 16TH-17TH CENTURY
Finely cast, depicted holding his raised left leg in his right hand bringing his toe to his mouth, naked except for his makara kundala, rings, bangles, armlets, waistband, anklets, toe rings, and necklaces. His hair is also curled up and meticulously rendered. The upper back with a small aperture.
Provenance: Barrie M. Heaven, Adelaide, Australia, by 2008. A private collection in Australia, acquired from the above.
Barrie M. Heaven (1938-2021) was a prominent Adelaide-based dealer and collector who specialized in Indian and Islamic art. A discerning connoisseur and longstanding supporter of the arts in South Australia, he was also a substantial donor to the Art Gallery of South Australia, contributing significantly to the development of its collections.
Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear, casting irregularities, soil encrustations to the crevices. Overall with an almost entirely black patina.
Weight: 4.5 kg
Dimensions: Height 32.5 cm
Though he may appear as a mere child playfully sucking on his toes, Krishna is in fact an incarnation of the powerful god Vishnu. This devotional image portrays a vision the sage Markandeya once had, when he saw the infant lying on a banyan leaf floating in the cosmic ocean. When Krishna revealed his true form, it was the all-pervading Vishnu, resting on the primordial waters between cosmic eras, when he gives rise to the re-creation of the universe. The reclining position implies a banyan leaf which lends its name to this iconography- 'vatapatra' (banyan leaf) 'shayi' (reclining).
Literature comparison:
Compare a related smaller bronze figure of Krishna lying on a Banyan leaf, Karnataka, South India, 15th-16th century, 14 cm high, in the Asian Civilisations Museum, accession number 1994-05383. Compare a related smaller inlaid gilded copper alloy figure of cosmic Vishnu as infant Krishna, Tamil Nadu, dated to the 16th-17th century, 18.4 cm high, in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 54.3081.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby's Paris, 9 December 2021, lot 115
Price: EUR 10,710 or approx.
EUR 12,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze figure of infant Krishna India, 17th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar hair, adornments, and size (31 cm).
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
