A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF CHAKRASAMVARA AND VAJRAVARAHI Nepal, 17^th-18^th century. Chakrasamvara striding in alidhasana on two prostrate figures over a lotus base, dressed in a tiger skin and adorned with a garland of severed heads, holding a damaru and khatvanga in his primary hands and other attributes including the head of Brahma, trident, kartika, and kapala in the radiating hands. Vajravarahi with both legs wrapped around his waist and holding a kartika and kapala in her raised hands, dressed in a festooned belt and adorned with beaded jewelry. His hair pulled up into a high chignon adorned with sun and crescent moon symbols above the foliate crowns.

Provenance: Old Viennese private collection, built over several generations between 1910 and 1975, thence by descent in the same family.
Condition: Good condition with some wear, particularly to gilt, and minor casting flaws. Small nicks, losses and light scratches, some bending and dents, primarily to attributes. The base sealed with a double vajra plate.

Weight: 915.1 g
Dimensions: Height 15.3 cm

Chakrasamvara's four heads are cast separately and inserted with an attachment tang at the bottom. (2)

Chakrasamvara, embodying the most important transcendental ideals in Buddhist art, couples with Vajravarahi symbolizing a perfect union of wisdom and compassion. From Chakrasamvara's neck hangs a garland of severed heads strung on a length of human intestine and the hair of a corpse, signifying the purification of speech and the mental factors according to the Chittamatra or Mind-Only School as described by Asanga.

Being so complex, only the best artists were fit to undertake the challenge of casting Chakrasamvara. The task most often fell to Newari master craftsmen from Nepal who produced such sculptures for domestic and Tibetan worship. The stylistic preferences of each of those two audiences are somewhat slight. But, while many contemporaneous Tibetan examples emphasize the ferociousness of Chakrasamvara's facial expressions, here instead, a benign intimacy is shared between the deities gazing into each other's eyes. This sentiment betrays a preference in Nepal for showing divine couples in harmony, as representatives of ideal matrimony.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 13 September 2011, lot 356
Price: USD 20,000 or approx. EUR 24,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt bronze figure of Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi, Nepal, 17^th century
Expert remark: Compare the similar benign expression, the two in embrace gazing into each other's eyes, as well as the beaded jewelry and high chignons. If the base is discounted on the present figure, this bronze is of similar height (12.7 cm). Note that Chakrasamvara has only one head, the figures are wearing skull crowns, and there is no lotus base.


鎏金銅勝樂金剛像
尼泊爾，十七至十八世紀。勝樂金剛勝四頭，十二臂，兩足，弓步。主尊頭戴五葉冠，上有太陽和新月符。主臂兩手分別持金剛杵和金剛鈴，擁抱明妃金剛亥母。其餘各手分別持不同的法器，如三叉戟、匕首、卡巴拉碗等。脖子上掛人首做成的項鍊，雙足奮力踩踏兩個魔鬼，威力無比。金剛亥母雙腿盤在勝樂金剛腰間，手持鋮刀和卡巴拉碗，穿著花飾腰帶，佩戴著珠飾。

來源：維也納私人老收藏，在1910 年與1975年期間，經過幾代人的共同努力建立，在同一家族保存至今。
品相：品相良好，有一些磨損，特別是鎏金和輕微的鑄造缺陷。小刻痕和輕微劃痕，一些彎曲和凹痕，主要是法器。底座密封，有雙金剛杵印密封。

重量：915.1 克
尺寸：高15.3 厘米

勝樂金剛的四首獨立鑄造，在底部插入連接柄。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得, 2011年9月13日, lot 356
價格：USD 20,000 （相當於今日EUR 24,000）
描述：17世紀尼泊爾鎏金銅勝樂金剛像
專家評論：比較相近的溫和神情，兩人擁抱在一起，凝視著對方的眼睛，還有串珠首飾和高高的髮髻。含底座的尺寸相近（12.7厘米）。請注意此尊勝樂金剛僅有一顆頭，頭戴頭骨皇冠，無蓮座。