A MAGNIFICENT AND MONUMENTAL SANDSTONE HEAD OF BUDDHA TANG DYNASTY

the plump face finely carved with almost perfectly symmetrical features imparting the buff sandstone with a serene vitality, the eyebrows rising across the broad brow in smooth curves issuing from the low bridge of the nose above circular nostrils, the deeply-set large eyes half-closed under heavy lids sweeping in bowstring curves, the full cheeks drawn into the delicately shaped mouth above the rounded double-chin, flanked with backswept ears ending in fragmentary pendulous lobes, all beneath a tier of overlapping folds of hair combed in rising and falling waves around a flattened hemispherical bun, set with tight whorls representing the ushnisha

Property from an Important Asian Collection.
Sotheby's London, 19th June 1999, lot 738.
Property from an Important Private American Collection.
Sotheby's New York, 31st March 2005, lot 88.

Ancient Chinese Sculptural Treasures: Carvings in Stone, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, 1998, cat. no. 62.

The overall condition is very good. There are just a few places with minor restoration. The nose has been rebuilt. The edges of the eyes have has a few minor retouching to small chipped areas as well as some places along the edge of the hair near the face. A few of the curls on the front of the head have rebuilt chips. The surface of the cheeks have been smoothed down to create a smoother face. The earlobes have unrestored chips.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The full-fleshed opulence of this head with its concisely rendered idealized features fully relates to high Tang style.  The size of the head indicates a monumental sculpture and, as such, part of an important complex. The stylistic evolution leading up to the present piece begins with the powerfully carved Northern Qi figures at the Northern Xiantangshan caves which show similarly shallow carved, bowed and lidded eyes and smooth, stylized features (see Treasures Rediscovered Chinese Stone Sculpture from the Sackler Collections at Columbia University, New York, 2008, no. 14). The Longmen caves, begun in the Northern Qi and completed in the Tang, reveal the same refined qualities and stylized features such as the central whorl of hair present on the domed ushinisha (see Zhongguo Meishu Quanji, Diasu -11- Longmen Shiku Diaoke, Beijing, 1988, figs. 99 and 100).

 

The trend towards this distinctive blend of naturalism and idealism culminates in the Tang dynasty caves at both Dunhuang in Gansu and Tianlongshan, near Taiyuan, Shanxi province. However, it is the Tang caves at Tianlongshan that most closely relate to the present piece.  Sculpture began at the caves during the Eastern Wei but activity increased dramatically during the reign of the Xuanzong Emperor between 714-740 CE.  While there are no comparable examples in size, there are several pieces that relate stylistically, featuring the same rhythmic treatment of the hair, full face and rounded features.  For a similarly carved sandstone head from Tianlongshan see The Art of Contemplation Religious Sculpture from Private Collections, The National Palace Museum, Taiwan, 1997, no. 66. A similar head of smaller size is in the Nezu Museum and illustrated in Chinese Buddhist Sculpture, Nezu Museum, Tokyo, 2009, no. 15. There is a seated gray sandstone and pigmented Sakyamuni Buddha from the north wall of Tianlongshan cave 21, illustrated in Hai-Wai Yi-Chen, Chinese Art in Overseas Collections: Buddhist Sculpture II, The National Palace Museum, Taiwan, 1990, no. 108.