STATUE DE VAJRASATTVA EN ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉ TIBET, XVE SIÈCLESTATUE DE VAJRASATTVA EN ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉTIBET, XVE SIÈCLEHimalayan Art Resources item no. 4853 24 cm (9 1/2 in.) high A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF VAJRASATTVA TIBET, 15TH CENTURY西藏 十五世紀 銅鎏金金剛薩埵像Provenance:With Claude de Marteau, Brussels, by 1970sVajrasattva (lit. 'Vajra Being') is identified by the vajra he holds before his chest and the bell he cradles against his hip. He represents the Primordial Buddha, and as such is identical with Vajradhara. Sometimes Vajrasattva is also considered a sixth Presiding Buddha (Tathagata). He is usually invoked during a purification rite undertaken before most tantric instruction in Tibetan Buddhism. Seated in double-lotus posture (vajraparyankasana) above a double-lotus base, the Primordial Buddha raises his chin to impart an uplifting expression. The flared design of his earrings follow the aesthetic traditions of the Kathmandu Valley, and is one of several features indicating the bronze was produced by a Newari master craftsman for a Tibetan patron. The sculpture compares favorably with related examples of Vajradhara published in von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, 1981, p. 430, nos. 113B-C).