A FINE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF SYAMATARA

Description:

Tibet. late 15th c.
H. 13,7 cm
Seated in lalitasana on a lotus base with her right foot resting on a lotus issued by the main one, her right hand lowered in the varadamudra while the left is showing the vitarkamudra, both holding stems of lotuses flowering along her upper arms, wearing sari, scarf floating around her body with its finials falling down on the base, jewellery partly set with turquoise beads, her face displaying a serene expression with downcast eyes below arched eyebrows, raised urna at her forehead, her hair combed in a chignon and secured with a tiara ornamented with a pair of floating ribbons, sealed.
Old Berlin private collection, assembled before 2000
The depiction of Syāmatārā (Green Tārā) is one of the most important iconographies in Tibetan Buddhism. She is considered one of the most important female bodhisattvas and a manifestation of compassion in female form. While White Tārā is primarily associated with longevity, Green Tārā embodies swift help in all situations, especially rescue from eight existential dangers (e.g., fire, water, wild animals, robbers, prison, demons). In the late 15th century, Tibet was undergoing a phase of intense cultural and religious development. The great monastic universities of the Gelug school, such as Drepung (founded in 1416) and Sera (founded in 1419), had already established themselves and were developing a new charisma. At the same time, the older schools (Kagyu, Sakya, Nyingma) continued to flourish, intensively cultivating the pictorial tradition of Tārā. - Very minor signs of age with small areas of wear to the gilding, good condition