G720 LARGE BRONZE FIGURE OF A SEATED BUDDHA

BURMA, MANDALAY PERIOD

19^TH CENTURY

H. 69 CMS, 27 INS

A large and finely cast gilded bronze figure of the Buddha with intricate and extensive inlay, seated in vajrasana, his right hand in bhumisparsimudra (the gesture of ‘summoning the earth to witness’) and his left resting in his lap in dhyanamudra; the face oval and framed by a band below the hairline inlaid with red and mirror glass, the mouth set in a gentle smile, wearing a sanghati with multiple pleats.

For four bronze Buddhas of similar type see page 181, p.126-129 in in Somkiart Lopetcharat, Myanmar Buddha: The Image and Its History, Bangkok:  Siam International Books Co., 2007. For a fine example of a seated marble Buddha of this type in the Victoria and Albert Museum, see no. 8 in J. Lowry, Burmese Art, London: Victoria & Albert Museum, 1974.

Provenance: Private English collection.

Previously in a private German collection.

Previously sold by us in 2015.