A COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF GREEN TARA PALA REVIVAL, QING DYNASTY, 17TH CENTURY

the deity depicted seated in lalitasana on a double-lotus base with a beaded upper edge, the right foot resting on a lotus bloom issuing from the base, the right hand resting on the right knee and held in varada mudra, the left raised before the well pronounced breasts and held in vitarka mudra, the face depicted with a serene expression and crowned with a five-leaf diadem atop neatly tied back hair, two utpala lotus stalks entwining around the limbs and extending upwards to the shoulders, the figure elaborately adorned with beaded jewellery including necklaces and bracelets

There are minor chips to the extremities of the figure, including a loss to the tip of the central leaf of the crown and the lotus bloom next to the left shoulder. General surface wear and oxidisation to the body.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Pala period Buddhist sculptures were especially popular in the early Qing dynasty, and a number is preserved in the holdings of the Palace Museum, Beijing, including a seated figure of Green Tara, illustrated in Buddhist Statues of Tibet. The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2008, p. 42, pl. 41. 'Pala Revival' figures were produced in relatively large numbers, closely emulating the style of the originals. For a 17th century copper-alloy figure of Sarasvati produced in the Pala style, where the structure of the double lotus base and texture of the modelling closely relates to the current figure, illustrated ibid., p. 199, pl. 190.

Compare also a Pala-period bronze sculpture of Red Tara illustrated by Wang Jiapeng, Buddhist Art from Rehol. Tibetan Buddhist Images and Ritual Objects from the Qing Dynasty Summer Palace at Chengde, Taipei, 1999, p. 141, pl. 57.  For an example of a Pala revival sculpture sold at auction, see the bronze figure of Tara sold at Christie's New York, 21st September 2007, lot 182.

For a possible prototype of this particularly sensuously modelled example, where the gentle curves of the body and prominent swollen breasts define the radiance of the female form, see a seated goddess dated to the 13th / 14th century, illustrated by Helmut Uhlig, On the Path to Enlightenment. Berti Aschmann Foundation of Tibetan Art at the Museum Rietberg, Zurich, 1995, p. 140, pl. 88, where the authors speculate it may depict a mother goddess.