A RARE THANGKA WITH THE FOOTPRINTS OF A KARMAPA, TIBET, 14TH - 16TH CENTURY Distemper and gilt on cloth. Depicting the soles of two golden feet with multicolored chakras standing on a moon disc above a multicolored lotus base, a stylized column in between topped by a blue utpala flower supporting the Karmapa, at the bottom center a red vase flanked by naga figures, all surrounded by various buddhas, protectors, and teachers.

Provenance: From a noted Swiss private collection.
Condition: Good condition with ancient wear, a minuscule hole at one toe, some creasing and abrasions. The distemper and gilt with signs of natural aging as well as microscopic crackling and flaking. Possibly some minuscule old touchups. Losses and loose thread to the undecorated edges.

Dimensions: Image size 46 x 38 cm, Size incl. frame 66.7 x 58.4 cm

Matted and framed behind glass. (2)

The Karmapa is the head of the Karma Kagyu, the largest sub-school of the Kagyu, itself one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Karmapa was Tibet's first consciously incarnating lama. Düsum Khyenpa, 1st Karmapa Lama (1110-1193), was a disciple of the Tibetan master Gampopa. A talented child who studied Buddhism with his father from an early age and who sought out great teachers in his twenties and thirties, he is said to have attained enlightenment at the age of fifty while practicing dream yoga. He was henceforth regarded by the contemporary, highly respected masters Shakya Sri and Lama Shang as the Karmapa, a manifestation of Avalokiteshvara, whose coming was predicted in the Samadhiraja Sutra and the Lankavatara Sutra.

The tradition of commissioning drawings of a teacher's feet appears to be an oral instruction coming down from Gampopa Sonam Rinchen, the teacher of the First Karmapa, Düsum Kyenpa, and also of Pagmodrupa Dorje Gyalpo, who wrote a famous early text describing this practice. Such paintings are extremely rare, with only a handful known in the East or the West.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 22 March 2011, lot 323
Price: USD 458,500 or approx. EUR 585,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An important thangka with the Footprints of the Third Karmapa, Rangjung Dorje, Tibet, circa 1339
Expert remark: Compare the closely related motif and colors as well as the related size (51.1 x 37.5 cm). Note that this lot has been attributed to a specific Karmapa and is possibly of an earlier date than the present lot.



十四至十六世紀西藏罕見噶瑪巴足印唐卡
布面膠彩描金。一幅噶瑪巴上師的足印唐卡。噶瑪巴坐在一巨大的蓮花莖所支撐的蓮座上。腳印上也繪有法輪符號，法輪作為佛教中最為代表性的符號，預示著佛陀在鹿野苑初次的說法佈道，因此上師腳印上的法輪符號同樣具有增強上師與佛陀形象連結的作用。頂部是一朵支撐噶瑪巴的藍色烏帕拉花，底部中央是一個紅色的花瓶，兩側是納迦人物。四周圍繞諸佛、護法與上師。

來源：瑞士知名私人收藏。
品相：狀況良好，有磨損，一隻腳趾上有一個小洞，有些摺痕和擦傷。有自然老化跡象，輕微裂紋和色彩剝落。有一些微小的修飾。邊緣有缺損和鬆散。

尺寸：畫面 46 x 38 厘米，含框66.7 x 58.4 厘米

鏡面。

噶瑪巴是噶瑪噶舉派的領袖，噶舉派是藏傳佛教四大宗派之一。噶瑪巴是藏傳佛教噶舉派中的最高持教法王，也是最早開啟乘願轉世傳統的藏傳佛教領袖。藏傳佛教視他為金剛總持的化身。

上師足印唐卡的傳統似乎是從第一世噶瑪巴杜松欽巴的上師岡波巴索南仁欽那里傳下來的，他也是巴摩竹巴多傑嘉波的上師。此類畫作極為罕見，東西方知之甚少。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得， 2011年3月22日，lot 323
價格：USD 458,500（相當於今日EUR 585,500）
描述：1339年西藏重要噶瑪巴第三世上師讓炯多傑足印唐卡
專家評論：比較非常相近的主題、顏色，以及尺寸 (51.1 x 37.5 厘米)。請注意此唐卡特別描繪一位噶瑪巴的上師，年代可能較早。