A FINE AND LARGE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF GARUDA, NEPAL, 18TH-19TH CENTURY

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A FINE AND LARGE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF GARUDA, NEPAL, 18TH-19TH CENTURY Powerfully cast with wings fully outspread, standing over a prostrate nagaraja on a lotus base with effusive petals, neatly engraved foliate scroll, and minutely beaded edges, one taloned foot pinning the chest and the other the scaled tail. His hands are raised in karana mudra, the rounded torso adorned with beaded jewelry and the thighs covered with finely incised feathers. The wings are detailed with overlapping plumage, a fan-shaped tail extending behind. The wrathful face has bulging eyes, a third eye, and a sharply hooked beak. A skull tiara crowns the forehead beneath two long, curving horns and flaming hair retaining red pigment. The base is sealed with a copper plate incised with a double vajra. Dimensions: Height 43.2 cm In Tantric Buddhism, Garuda is a powerful bird-headed deity who manifests to subdue the nagas, serpent spirits associated with disease and poisoning. His traditional enmity towards these beings derives from Indian mythology, where he is revered as Vishnu’s mount. The present bronze captures the deity in dynamic triumph, wings fully outstretched and taloned feet firmly pinning a prostrate naga upon a lotus base. His fierce expression, bulging eyes, and sharply hooked beak emphasize his protective and wrathful nature, while his flaming hair rises behind his horns. His subjugation of the naga, rendered with a human torso and scaled serpentine tail, signifies protection from physical afflictions and may also be understood as triumph over the spiritual poisons of desire, hatred, and ignorance. The giant birdlike Garuda spends eternity killing snakelike Nagas, according to both Buddhist and Hindu stories. The feud started when both Garuda's mother and the Nagas' mother married the same husband. The husband then gave each wife one wish. The Nagas' mother asked for a thousand children. Garuda's mother wished for just two children who were superior to all of the Nagas. Their rivalry continued until Garuda's mother lost a bet and became the servant and prisoner of the Nagas' mother. Garuda was able to free his mother by stealing the nectar of immortality from the gods. But he swore vengeance for his mother's treatment and has been fighting Nagas ever since. Literature comparison: Compare a near identical Nepalese gilt-bronze figure of Garuda, dated 18th-19th century, in the Honolulu Museum of Art, accession number 10873.1. Compare a closely related Nepalese copper figure of Garuda, near identical to the present lot save for the loss of gilt, 43.5 cm high, formerly in the collection of Dr. Erberto Lo Bue and now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number IS.5-2026. Compare a closely related Tibetan gilt-bronze figure of Garuda, dated to the 17th century, sold at Sotheby’s New York, September 1995, illustrated on Himalayan Art Resources, item number 10416. Compare a closely related 18th-century Tibetan-Chinese example in the Shanghai Museum. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Christie’s New York, 19 September 2002, lot 178 Price: USD 28,680 or approx. EUR 43,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the subject, modeling, manner of casting, gilding, and size (46 cm).

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