A RARE AND LARGE SANDSTONE FIGURE OF GANESHA, PRASAT ANDET STYLE, PRE-ANGKOR PERIOD, 7TH CENTURY

A RARE AND LARGE SANDSTONE FIGURE OF GANESHA, PRASAT ANDET STYLE, PRE-ANGKOR PERIOD, 7TH CENTURY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve

The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005:
“No. 338, LA 1973, A. Maynard, Pre-Khmer 7th c. standing Ganesha”
Gallery price: EUR 125,000 or approx.

EUR 209,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.

Cambodia. Superbly carved, depicted standing in samabhanga, with his primary arms gently raised grasping a radish and a ladoo, while the secondary left arm supports a conch shell held above the shoulder. The anthropomorphic figure clad in a diaphanous dhoti with a fishtail hem, falling gracefully toward the front over his ample abdomen. The large elephant head distinguished by a long trunk curving to the left, reaching toward the sweet held in his hand, and flanked by prominent tusks and large, ridged ears splayed outward.

Provenance: Adrian Maynard, London, by 1973. Collection of Leo Albrecht, Denmark, acquired from the above. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above before 2005. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for at least 21 years.

Adrian Maynard joined Spink & Sons in 1947, where he was appointed Director from 1962 and eventually Deputy Chairman until his retirement in 1984. He was a man of enormous drive and undoubtedly the most flamboyant character to take charge of the Asian art department, which he took to the height of its success. Maynard believed firmly that "a dealer, whose fortune and good name depends on knowing what to buy, has a much greater responsibility to be right about the objects that come into his hands than, say, an academic, who never handles large sums of money.”

Leo Albrecht was a German-born publisher and literary agent who established himself in Copenhagen after the Second World War. In 1951 he founded his agency, which played an important role in expanding the international market for Scandinavian literature. He began collecting art in the late 1950s, with a particular focus on Asian sculpture. In Copenhagen, he spent much of his time visiting antique dealers, museums, and exhibitions. He developed especially close ties with Ole Haslund, Lau Sunde, and Freddy Hansen, among the most prominent dealers in their fields. He also traveled frequently to London, where he became close friends with Adrian Maynard. Jorgen Ruben first met Albrecht in 1984, and they quickly became close friends. Ruben later described him as a gentleman and “the greatest collector of Asian art in Denmark.” He acquired Albrecht's entire Asian sculpture collection when Albrecht moved back to Germany after selling his publishing company. The two remained close, with Albrecht continuing to visit Denmark each summer and staying at the Ruben family's beach house north of Copenhagen.

Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.

Important Note: For essential information on the

Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger

Condition: Good condition with old wear, traces of weathering and erosion, obvious losses, two arms with old repairs, smoothed chips, and occasional scratches.

Weight: 84.9 kg
Dimensions: Height 90.3 cm (excl. stand), 106.2 cm (incl. stand)

With an associated metal stand. (2)

Ganesha was among the earliest Hindu deities to be represented in large-scale stone sculpture in Southeast Asia, introduced to Cambodian artists from India in the seventh century. In this region, the elephant-headed deity associated with the removal of obstacles acquired a more autonomous status than in India. His images were often enshrined in dedicated temples as principal objects of worship. At the outset of any undertaking, devotees traditionally invoke Ganesha through prayer and offerings, including sweets and radishes, which are among his favored foods, as represented in this sculpture.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related sandstone figure of Ganesha, dated pre-Angkor period, Sambor Prei Kuk style, 7th century, 77 cm high, in the National Museum of Cambodia, inventory number Ka.1611. Compare a closely related smaller sandstone figure of Ganesha, dated pre-Angkor period, Prasat Andet style, second half of the 7th century, 43.8 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 1982.220.7, illustrated in Pratapaditya Pal, Sensuous Immortals: Selection of Sculptures from the Pan-Asian Collection, 1979, p. 226, no. 136.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 21 March 2007, lot 269
Price: USD 96,000 or approx.

EUR 135,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare sandstone figure of Ganesha, Khmer, Pre-Angkor period, circa 8th century
Expert remark: Compare the related modeling of the figure, manner of carving, and stone. Note the

much smaller size (34.3 cm).

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