† AN EXCEEDINGLY RARE AND VERY LARGE (79 CM) FIGURE OF AVALOKITESHVARA, SRIVIJAYA PERIOD

† AN EXCEEDINGLY RARE AND VERY LARGE (79 CM) FIGURE OF AVALOKITESHVARA, SRIVIJAYA PERIOD, 8TH-9TH CENTURY

Scientific Analysis Report: A certificate issued by Re. S. Artes on 31 July 2026, no. R 146195A-13, based on the analysis of a sample taken from the lower part, proper right side, which was observed with a scanning electron microscope (SEM), finds a brass alloy: 85.8% Cu, 7.1% Zn, 3.4% Sn, 3.4% Pb, and 0.3% Fe. The corrosion penetrates deeply into the alloy and includes copper oxides and chlorides, lead migration, and incorporated sediments. These features are considered consistent with long-term natural corrosion. The laboratory therefore concludes that both alloy and corrosion are compatible with an object cast more than 1,000 years ago. A copy of the report accompanies the lot.

Expert's note:
It is difficult to conceive just how imposing the complete figure to which this substantial fragment originally belonged would have been. The surviving section, measuring 79 cm from the top of the headdress to the upper thighs, appears to preserve approximately three-fifths of the figure's original height. Based on the proportions of comparable standing bronzes,

the complete sculpture probably stood around 130-140 cm tall.

Southern Thailand. Superbly cast, the bodhisattva standing in samabhanga, the slender torso with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, the arms adorned with large foliate armlets. He is clad in a short dhoti secured by an elaborate jeweled belt, the upper body richly adorned with layered beaded necklaces and a long upavita descending diagonally across the torso and continuing over the back.

The sensitively modeled face bears a serene and compassionate expression, with downcast almond-shaped eyes beneath gently arched brows centered by a prominent urna, a slender nose, and full lips forming a subtle smile, flanked by long pendulous earlobes. The hair is gathered into a tall, intricately worked jatamukuta centered by a diminutive seated image of Amitabha Buddha, with long beaded tresses descending along the sides of the head.

Provenance: The private collection of Mme. Barbieux, acquired in the late 1980s in Bordeaux, France, and thence by direct descent to her son Eric Dieu.

Eric Dieu is a Frenchman who established Galerie Mouhot, a gallery specializing in Khmer Art based in River City Bangkok, named after Henri Mouhot (1826-1861), the mid-19th century naturalist and explorer credited with reintroducing the world to the grandeur of Angkor and the Khmer civilization.

Condition: Very good condition with old wear and casting irregularities. Obvious losses including two large apertures to either side of the crotch, signs of prolonged burial, and encrustations. The copper with a naturally grown patina with areas of fine malachite encrustations.

Weight: 45.9 kg (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 79 cm (excl. stand), 91 cm (incl. stand)

Mounted on a modern stand. (2)

Srivijaya emerged in southern Sumatra during the seventh century and developed into a powerful maritime realm whose influence extended across the Straits of Malacca and much of the Malay Peninsula, including southern Thailand. Situated between the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, the peninsula was crossed by routes connecting the Indian Ocean with the South China Sea, along which merchants, monks, sacred texts, and artistic traditions circulated. Centers such as Chaiya and Nakhon Si Thammarat consequently flourished as important nodes of Buddhist devotion and maritime exchange. The close association of southern Thailand with Srivijayan Buddhism is documented by the Ligor inscription of 775, discovered at Nakhon Si Thammarat, which records the foundation by a ruler of Srivijaya of sanctuaries dedicated to the Buddha and the bodhisattvas Padmapani and Vajrapani.

Avalokiteshvara acquired particular prominence within this maritime Buddhist world. As the Bodhisattva of Compassion, he offered salvation from both spiritual suffering and immediate physical danger; the Lotus Sutra specifically invokes his power to deliver those imperiled at sea, making him a natural protector of merchants and mariners. The diminutive image of Amitabha in the headdress identifies the deity, while the serene expression and princely ornaments proclaim his celestial rank. Large bronze images such as the present work embody the cosmopolitan character of southern Thailand during this period, combining artistic traditions derived from India, Java, and mainland Southeast Asia. They testify to a world in which maritime routes carried not only precious commodities but also religious ideas, ritual practices, and new forms of sacred art.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related copper alloy figure of Avalokiteshvara from Southern Thailand, dated late 8th-early 9th century, 76.7 cm high, in the National Museum, Bangkok, accession number SV24, included in the exhibition Lost Kingdoms: Hindu-Buddhist Sculpture of Early Southeast Asia, 5th to 8th Century, 15 April-27 July 2014, and published in the exhibition catalogue by John Guy, p. 259, cat. no. 166. Compare a closely related copper alloy figure of Avalokiteshvara Padmapani, 63.5 cm high, recovered from Wat Wiang, Chaiya, Surat Thani, Southern Thailand, and now in the National Museum, Bangkok, illustrated ibid., p. 258, fig. 146, where the author notes it is “probably the work recorded in a contemporary inscription as having been cast in 775 and was undoubtedly a royal commission.”

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 20 September 2006, lot 202
Price: USD 66,000 or approx.

EUR 94,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare bronze figure of Avalokiteshvara, Thailand or Indonesia, Shrivijaya, 9th century
Expert remark: Compare the related modeling, manner of casting, and subject.

Note the much smaller size (44.5 cm).

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