A brass figure of Rama Eastern India, Orissa, 15th century 16 1/4 in. (41.2 cm.) high Provenance: Acquired in New York in the 1990’s
Despite his smile, Rama appears formidable in this powerful stance with his arms out before him as if holding his characteristic bow and arrow, with which he is able to defeat any demon and deflect any weapon in his way. Rama is the seventh avatar of Vishnu and a legendary king of Ayodhya. He is a prominent figure in the Hindu pantheon, and particularly important within the Hindu tradition of Vaishnavism wherein Vishnu is exalted. Many details of his life come from the Ramayana, one of the epic poems of Ancient India authored by the great Maharishi Valmiki. Rama’s life and journey is one of perfect adherence to Dharma despite the series of harsh tests he endures, such as his own exile inflicted on him by his own father and the kidnapping of his wife Sita. Here Rama is pictured as the ideal man, just as the maharishis describe him–fear-striking and beautiful. This marvelous bronze image from Orissa certainly captures Rama’s divine qualities, as he appears only semi-human with his perfect proportions and complete physical symmetry. The artist evidently took great care in matching each minute detail from one side to the other. Compare the present figure to a fifteenth-century brass figure of Radha published by Vidya Dehejia in Devi The Great Goddess, Female Divinity in South Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, 1999, p. 329, cat no. 77, also sold at Sotheby’s New York, 21 March 2019, lot 917. The treatment of the circular, tieried, lotus base is nearly identical as are the lotiform designs that punctuate each piece of jewelry that adorns Radha. The facial features are also strikingly similar despite the difference in sex: note the extremely wide eyes, the prominent nose with a sharp and straight bridge, and the full smiling lips, all beneath a discreet singular brow line. These two examples are masterworks of Orissan bronze casting.
Comparable Works
A Copper Alloy Figure Of Radha Eastern India, Orissa, 15th Century 12 3/8 in. (31.5 cm.) Sotheby’s New York, March 19, 2008, lot 295 Price Realized: $118,750 USD
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