Catalog: Antiques: Regional Art: Asian (1184)

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka depicting historical Buddha Shakyamuni emanating rays of golden light, his right hand in bhumisparsha (earth-touching) mudra, his left hand holding an alms bowl. Central figure is surrounded by 18 of Buddha’s original disciples (2 of them are standing holding kakhara - long staff with rattle to scare off insects, and thus prevent the carrier from stepping on them) with additional figures of Boddhidharma and Budai...

Very rare late 18th - early 19th century framed Tibetan thangka depicting arhat Kanaka Bharadvaja - one of the 16 original disciples of the historical Buddha - seated on a lotus dais with his hands in dhyanamudra - mudra of concentration. He is surrounded by 7 other original arhat with their characteristic hand gestures and attributes (anticlockwise from lower left): Anjita, Shribhadra, Pindola, Rahula, Kalika, Nagasena and Abheda...

19th century netsuke of a man with a horn on his head, bent under the weight of a richly dressed woman on his back. The subject of the netsuke is Ikkaku Sennin (single horn Sage), a supernatural being born of a doe. According to a Japanese legend, he grew angry with the Rain Dragons and sealed them away in a cave, causing a drought. Beautiful Indian princess Sendarama was sent to tempt him and when he yielded to her, he lost his magical powers, and the rain returned...

Late 18th to early 19th century netsuke of a recumbent cow with a boy climbing on top of it while holding a rat by its tail. The netsuke is a reference to a Zodiac pairing of animals with an unusual addition of a human. Finely carved, its hooves bent beneath its body, wearing a halter with a length of rope lying across its back, eyes of the cow inlaid with black horn, rat’s eyes are brown horn...

Unusually sculptural 19th century good size netsuke of 2 shishi fighting over a hollow pierced ball. Extraordinary carving with superb detailing and volume - see their faces, powerful paws and muscular limbs, tufts of hair and long bushy tails. Expert staining, beautiful patina, very pleasant to the touch. Equally exceptional when viewed from the back...

19th century netsuke of cut vegetables, tofu and rice cakes inside a wooden pan with handle. Superb elegant design in Japanese taste with perfectly captured mood of happy anticipation of a good meal, excellent carving, beautiful patina. Signed MITSUHIRO on the bottom of the pan. For a lengthy discussion of this first rate distinct artist see NETSUKE & INRO ARTISTS AND HOW TO READ THEIR SIGNATURES by George Lazarnick, page 775. Clever and unusual object by the master carver...

Late 18th to early 19th century Kyoto school netsuke of a puppy wearing a cloth collar, playing with an abalone shell. Strong early piece with amazingly lifelike facial expression and wonderful fur texture worn on protruding parts. Pleasantly chunky, eyes are inlaid with black horn, old stable age lines, wonderful wear and patina turning honey color on the bottom. Deep himotoshi in accordance with the habit of the time. Excellent strong netsuke. Length 2 1/16 inches.

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka depicting Buddha Amitabha surrounded by his eight manifestations. Amitabha is the Buddha of Infinite Light and presides over Sukhavati (the Western Paradise). Beautifully painted with natural mineral pigments on cotton, wonderful tranquil face, original silk mounts, original silk gauze cloth protecting the painting from light and wear (can be seen bunched up for the purpose of photography on top of the mounts on Enlargement 2)...

19th century boxwood netsuke depicting seated Zen Buddhism Patriarch Daruma wearing characteristic cape and leaning with his back on a huge octopus tentacle, his head tilted slightly to one side, with hand to ear, and a look on his face that suggests he is hearing something unusual...

19th century boxwood netsuke of a dog licking its puppy. Wonderfully captured mood of the scene, superb realistic carving, the breed looks like spaniel or Pekinese, extraordinary depiction of their fur and faces. Great netsuke. Length 1.7 inches.

18th century or earlier Chinese carved marble head of the Buddha. Superb carving, extraordinary beatific face with a slight smile. Wonderful finish to the surface, great feel of age. Pleasantly heavy, comes with very well made hardwood stand. Marble height 7.5 inches, height with stand 10 inches.

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting Bodhisattva Manjushri seated on a lotus throne holding a flaming sword and a lotus flower with a book on it in his hands, sun and moon among clouds behind him and a pile of offerings in front of the throne. Manjushri’s name means “Gentle Glory”, a flaming sword represents the realization of transcendent wisdom which cuts down ignorance and duality...

Rare 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting eight armed Goddess Maha Pratisara seated on a lotus throne and holding various weapons, with Boddhisattva Manjushri depicted above her. Pratisara is one of the Five Pancha Rakshas - a group of five female deities that are the personifications of five early Buddhist sutras...

18th to early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting six-armed Mahakala standing on a lotus base trampling on elephant headed Vigneshwara (Lord of Obstacles). Mahakala is an emanation of Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara and the leader of the dharmapalas (Defenders of the Buddhist Law), his name means “beyond time/death”, and he represents the flow of time...

18th century Tibetan thangka depicting Ekadasamukha - Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara manifesting its form with 11 faces. Boddhisattva is holding various implements in his 6 hands, there is Tsongkhapa surrounded by 2 lamas depicted above him and 3 deities (White Tara, Mahakala and Green Tara) below. Beautifully painted with natural mineral pigments on cotton, original mounts lost its silk front but retained cotton backing, the thangka can be displayed hanging...

19th century wooden netsuke of two heads of reishi fungus with an inlaid slug crawling over the top of the lower fungus. Superb elegant naturalistic carving with excellent depiction of fungus texture as well as antennae and soft skin of the invertebrate...

Good size early 19th century boxwood netsuke of Gama sennin standing with one foot raised while his usual companion - a toad - is climbing onto his left shoulder - apparently much more rare version, as the creature usually seem to prefer the right one. Excellent depiction of sennin’s face with a touch of madness, flowing lines of his robe, leaf skirt and cape. Very cleverly done himotoshi (through the right sleeve to his back), old replacement to the top part of his staff. Height 3 5/8 inches ...

Very rare early 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting the unusual White manifestation of 6-armed Bhuddist dharmapala Hayagriva. His more common manifestation is Red attesting to his nature as a wrathful form of Avalokiteshvara and thus the archetype of fierce compassion. He is easily recognizable by 3 horse heads in his crown, shown wearing a tiger skin apron and a long necklace of human heads, holding various implements in his hands. Hayagriva”s special ability is to cure diseases, espe...