STUPA EN ÉMAUX CLOISONNÉES ET ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉ DYNASTIE...

STUPA EN ÉMAUX CLOISONNÉES ET ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉ
DYNASTIE QING, XVIIIE SIÈCLE
64 cm (25 1/4 in.) high
A CLOISONNÉ ENAMEL AND GILT COPPER ALLOY STUPA
QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

Provenance
An American Collection
Christie's, Paris, 13 June 2018, lot 209

This unusually large gilt-bronze and cloisonné enamel stupa follows the most ancient form of stupa replicating the monumental burial mounds of ancient India that were appropriated into Buddhism as depositories for Buddha's relics. The stupa is dominated at the centre by a large dome and aperture wreathed with gold, resting on a circular stepped base and surmounted by a tall spire consisting of thirteen stacked gold discs telescoping in size from large to small in an upward direction, representing the ten bodhisattva levels and the three stages of a buddha, tapering towards the top and crowned by an ornate parasol suspending strands of beads, and topped by a tapering flame diminishing into the state of luminosity-emptiness, all set on a gilt-metal tiered circular pedestal and entirely decorated with lotus scrolls on a vibrant turquoise ground. The elaborate shape of this stupa evolved over a long time. Originally, burial mounds were erected over the bodies of great teachers who were buried in a seated, meditative position. The basic form of the stupa was adopted by Buddhists who saw the dome of the stupa not just containing a great master seated in meditation, but Buddha seated in padmasana with his legs crossed in a meditative pose when he achieved enlightenment, his upright body represented by the tall spire of stacked discs, and the top of the spire representing his head. As Buddhist doctrine spread from India to Nepal, Tibet and China, the form of the stupa changed while their function remained the same. Stupa were made in large as well as smaller, scaled-down versions, and in many different materials, often containing small relics or a small image of Buddha. This large stupa would also have contained an image of the seated Buddha Amitayus, the Buddha of Infinite Life, within the cavity of the dome, the unmoving center, a space of stillness, peace, and enlightenment. The spire (yasti) symbolizing the axis mundi, centre of the cosmos bisecting sacred Mount Meru, centre of the Buddhist world, surrounded by a harmika and crowned by an umbrella (chattra).

This impressive gilt-bronze and cloisonné enamel stupa was made in the 18th century, probably during the reign of the Qianlong emperor (1736-95), a devout practitioner of the Tibetan form of Buddhism. Its unusually large size, attention to detail including the multi-tiered base and stairs recall imperial architecture, suggesting that this stupa was commissioned by the Qing court. The strong imperial patronage of Tibetan Buddhism and the support of the Dalai and Panchen lamas of Tibet was an important point in pacifying the Tibetan-Mongolian subjects. Between the three Qing emperors Kangxi (1662-1722), Yongzheng (1723-35) and Qianlong (1736-95), twenty-five Tibetan Buddhist temples were founded, all three emperors being the dominant financial supporters. Under the Qianlong emperor, Beijing, Chengde and Mount Wutai in Shanxi were transformed into major Tibetan Buddhist centres, the emperor initiating and financing the construction of many monasteries of the dominant Gelugpa order. He similarly initiated the construction of Tibetan Buddhist shrines within his many palaces, dedicating the largest part of religious space within the Forbidden City to Tibetan Buddhist shrines with resident lama, see Chuimei Ho and Bennet Bronson, Splendors of China's Forbidden City. The Glorious Reign of Emperor Qianlong, New York, 2004, pp. 128-130. Six shrines dedicated to Tibetan Buddhism with a distinctive layout were constructed in the imperial residences for the emperor's personal use, three of them in the Forbidden City in Beijing. Each shrine consisted of six double-storied cells flanking a central hall, all furnished with large religious paintings, images, and ritual objects. In the Fanhua Lou, the Building of Buddhist Brilliance, located in the retirement compound of the Qianlong emperor in the Forbidden City, a monumental cloisonné enamel stupa is at the centre of each cell (Fig. 1), see The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 43, Metal-Bodied Enamel Ware, Hong Kong, 2002, pp. 148-149 and pl. 141; also Chuimei Ho and Bennet Bronson, op.cit., pp. 133-139. A pair of massive stupa can be seen flanking the main altar at the Pu-to-cong-cheng (Temple of the Potalaka Doctrine) at the Imperial Summer Retreat in Chengde, see A Special Exhibition of Buddhist Gilt Votive Object, Taipei, 1995, p. 20, fig. 5. As a sign of filial piety and devotion to Tibetan Buddhism, in 1777, the Qianlong emperor decreed a stupa be made of solid gold to store his mother's hair after her death together with an image of the Buddha Amitayus, see Chuimei Ho and Bennet Bronson, op.cit., pp. 152-153, fig. 181.

Several cloisonné enamel stupa of 18th century date are known. Compare, for example, a cloisonné enamel stupa of the same size, also dated to the 18th century, in the collection of the National Museum of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, accession number F1991.6. A slightly smaller, gilt-bronze and cloisonné enamel stupa in the Palace Museum collection, Beijing, is published in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 43, Metal-Bodied Enamel Ware, Hong Kong, 2002, pp. 150, p. 142. A smaller example formerly in the Ann and Gordon Getty collection, was sold in Christie's New York, 23 October 2022, lot 524.

For the figures listed in this essay, please refer to our printed or digital catalogue.

銅鎏金掐絲琺瑯佛塔
清 十八世紀

來源
美國私人收藏
佳士得，巴黎，2018年6月13日，拍品209

這座構造龐大的銅鎏金掐絲琺琅佛塔，遵循了古印度存放佛陀舍利的墓丘佛塔的樣式。佛塔中央見大圓頂及開口，圓頂周圍鑲有金絲，底部是一個圓形階梯基座，上面是由十三個金盤組成的高塔尖，金盤由下至上尺寸遞減，代表十個菩薩層次和三個佛陀的階段，頂部是則為華蓋，懸掛串珠，並以逐漸變細的火焰作為頂飾，象徵光明空性的狀態。此構造安置於一個銅鎏金圓形底座上，整體裝飾有捲葉蓮紋，底色為鮮艷的綠松石色。大型佛塔內部成為一個靜止、安寧、和平與令人得開悟之空間，或曾供奉一尊無量壽佛像。尖塔（剎）象徵著世界的軸心，穿過須彌山正中，即佛教世界的中心。

佛塔之鑄造工藝精湛，銅鎏金以及掐絲琺琅相映成輝，可能製作於十八世紀，或為乾隆皇帝（1736-95）在位期間。乾隆正是一位虔誠的藏傳佛教修行者。其不尋常的碩大尺寸，以及多層基座及階梯上的精緻細節，讓人聯想到皇家建築，表明這座佛塔可能是由清朝宮廷所委託而造。對藏傳佛教的鼎力資助，以及對西藏達賴和班禪喇嘛的支持，是清廷穩定藏蒙兩族人民的重要方式。在康熙（1662-1722）、雍正（1723-35）和乾隆（1736-95）三位皇帝在位年間，一共建立了二十五座藏傳佛教寺廟，而皇帝都是其主要的財政支持者。在乾隆皇帝統治下，北京承德以及山西五台山皆轉化為主要的藏傳佛教聖地，由皇帝發起並資助了許多當時極盛的格魯派的寺廟。同時，乾隆亦在其諸多宮殿內建立佛堂，將紫禁城內主要的宗教場所變為駐有喇嘛高僧之佛堂（見Chuimei Ho 及 Bennet Bronson，《Splendors of China's Forbidden City ——The Glorious Reign of Emperor Qianlong》，紐約，2004年，頁128-130。

已知幾件亦為十八世紀之掐絲琺瑯佛塔可資比較。例如，一件同樣大小的掐絲琺瑯佛塔，收藏於華盛頓特史密森尼學會國家藝術博物館（編號F1991.6）。另一件略小的鎏金掐絲琺瑯佛塔著錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系43：金屬胎琺瑯器》，香港，2002年，頁150，圖版142。另一較小之例，曾屬於Ann 及 Gordon Getty 收藏，於2022年10月23日在紐約佳士得拍賣，拍品524。

關於文中所提及之參考圖，請參閱此場拍賣之電子或紙質圖錄。