A THANGKA DEPICTING FOUR ARHATS TIBET, 19TH CENTURY

A THANGKA DEPICTING FOUR ARHATS
TIBET, 19TH CENTURY
Himalayan Art Resources item no. 18310
25 1/8 x 54 1/4 in. (64 x 54 cm)
Footnotes:
西藏 十九世紀 四羅漢唐卡

This painting depicts the arhats Bakula, Rahula, Ajita, and Panthaka, who are presented fruit offerings by two lay worshippers, both carrying monochrome porcelain dishes on pink and white ground. Enclosed within a balustrade of deep-blue color, the arhats bask within a cloud-blanketed mountain landscape surrounded by stylized lily flowers in pink and a nearby waterfall that opens into a larger pool. Located high up in the clouds above is Tsongkhapa accompanied by Gyaltsab and Khedrup Jey, while located at the foreground are the Buddhist protector deities Mahakala, Yama Dharmaraja, and Vaishravana, indicating this painting's association with the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. See another painting of four arhats with a closely related use of landscape, architecture, and unique rendering of flowers (HAR 13649), sold at Sotheby's, New York, 23 March 2019, lot 1651.

Provenance:
The Richard R. & Magdalena Ernst Collection
Sotheby's, New York, 22 March 2018, lot 985