Beschreibung:

Lot details The atlant squats with his right leg raised, his toes outstretched, his right hand resting on his knee and his left still holding part of the superstructure which was originally located above him. His face superbly carved with almond-shaped eyes below bushy furrowed brows and full bow-shaped lips, framed by thick tufts of hair, flanked by his large wings. Provenance: An old private collection in France. Acher Eskenasy, Paris, France, acquired from the above in 2001. LP Collection Paris, France, acquired from the above. Acher Eskenasy is a noted French scholar and collector of Asian and tribal art. Major works previously owned by him are now in important collections and museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris. Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, losses, nicks, scratches, structural cracks, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations. With an old sand-colored pigment coating. Weight: 8,241 g (incl. stand) Dimensions: Height 30.5 cm (excl. stand) and 35.5 cm (incl. stand) With a fitted wood stand. (2) Only a few sculptures communicate so clearly the classical legacy in Gandharan art. His mature, bushy face recalls the portraits of Greek and Roman gods and leaders, while his Herculean musculature evokes the athletic ideal. Furthermore, the atlant type stems from a tradition in classical architecture of depicting male and female figures supporting architectural superstructures best known from The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius, dedicated to Emperor Augustus (see Rowland, Vitruvius: Ten Books on Architecture, Cambridge, 1999, pages 83 and 135). In the Gandharan context, similar examples in stucco surviving in situ line the veneer of stupa bases at Taxila and Hadda, recording the placement of such figures at Buddhist sites. Whilst maintaining a similar function and a clearly Western look, the Gandharan version differs from the classical prototype in the common inclusion of wings and the primarily ornamental rather than architectural function of the figure. Moreover, while we have evidence from which to understand his context at Buddhist sites, his precise identity remains a mystery. He has been called a disguised yaksha, a lesser Greek god, and a Garuda, yet there is no archaeological or textual foundation to underpin any of these claims (see Foucher, L’art Gréco-Bouddhique du Gandhara, 1905, page 208, and Errington, The Western Discovery of the Art of Gandhara and the Finds of Jamalgarhi, London, 1987, page 67). Perhaps, the term “Atlas” ties him too closely to the classical prototypes, at the risk of obscuring added layers of meaning in the unique Gandharan context. Literature comparison: For a further discussion of winged Atlas figures from Gandhara, see P. Pal, Asian Art at the Norton Simon Museum, vol. 1, fig. 35, p. 68. For similar examples of winged “Atlas” figures, see W. Zwalf, A Catalogue of the Gandhara Sculpture at the British Museum, 1996, pp. 206-211, fig. 355-368. Two other examples survive in the Claude de Marteau collection in Brussels and the Peshawar Museum (see Kurita, Gandharan Art, vol. II, Tokyo, 1990, figs. 448 & 453, pp. 155 & 157). Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Bonhams New York, 17 March 2014, lot 66 Price: USD 245,000 or approx. EUR 280,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: A schist figure of a winged atlas, Ancient region of Gandhara, 3rd/4th century Expert remark: Note the larger size (40 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Christie’s New York, 21 March 2007, lot 238 Price: USD 12,000 or approx. EUR 15,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: A Gray Schist Figure of Atlas, Gandhara, 2nd/3rd Century Expert remark: Compare the subject, style of carving and material. Note the slightly smaller size (28.5 cm). 西元三至四世紀犍陀羅灰色片岩阿特拉斯像 阿特拉斯像雕刻逼真、雄偉有力，呈坐姿，右腿半力，右手撐在膝蓋上，左腿彎曲，肩膀後面張開翅