TIBETO-CHINESE, 18TH CENTURY

'Nowadays, it is thought important to demand freedom for people, but it is equally important to grant freedom to things. Things must be allowed their own lives, their own freedom to move and exist under whatever new conditions life leads them to, free to go wherever they are most wanted and needed. This is particularly important for artistic and scientific creations. It is ridiculous to impose fees and erect barriers and restrictions when the human spirit has created something special. Let things carry their flame to new places, wherever chance takes them. Let them be free! Let them live their own lives, wherever destiny takes them.'
-Nicholas Roerich, ‘The Freedom of Things’
This is the philosophy the artist Nicholas Roerich brought with him from Russia to America to establish a new life and to found new institutions. He had with him several hundred paintings and established a museum for them in New York. He went on to travel Central Asia, India, and the Himalayas to collect artworks, and create artworks of his own, to contribute to the Roerich Museum.
Helena Roerich, Nicolas’s wife, greatly fostered his interest in the culture and philosophy of Buddhism, India, and the Himalayan region. After moving to America in 1920, and working to establish the Roerich museum, Nicholas and Helena began plans for an extensive tour of Central and South Asia, traveling to Siberia, India, Nepal, Tibet, Mongolia and Sikkim, along with their two sons. In 1923, the family embarked on the expedition, which resulted in the production of over 500 paintings of monasteries and landscapes, a book Heart of Asia, and the careful selection of Buddhist artworks for soon to open Roerich Museum. He reached Tibet in 1928 and his time there was marked by remarkable encounters with sacred landmarks including Tingri where Milarepa resided in the 11^th century. Roerich returned to New York in 1929 for the opening of the museum, the same year he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in promoting international peace through art. He also spent this year propagating a project most dear to him, the Roerich Pact, a treaty for the protection of cultural property during times of war.
The present figure was collected by Roerich in Tibet in 1928 on behalf of Louis and Nettie Horch, the founders of the Roerich museum. Remarkable in its size and material, the figure represents Vajrabhairava in consort with Vajra Vetali. Vajrabhairava, also known as Yamantaka, Conqueror of the Obstacle of Death, is an important deity in all sects of Tibetan Buddhism, but perhaps none more so than in the Gelug school. The founder of that tradition, Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), popularized the worship of Vajrabhairava in the 14th century, and also systemized his represented iconography. Among other aspects, the arrangement of the additional faces in a circular manner around the back of the head became almost exclusively reserved for Gelugpa depictions of the deity. As this feature is present in the current work, one can ascertain that it was created according to Gelugpa principles.
Within the Gelugpa tradition, Vajrabhairava is one of the principal meditation deities of the Anuttarayoga practice, alongside Guhyasamaja and Chakrasamvara. He is considered a wrathful manifestation of Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Transcendent Wisdom. According to Buddhist mythology, Manjushri took the form of Vajrabhairava, the terrifying buffalo-headed deity to defeat Yama, the lord of death, and thus eliminating the obstacle of death. Significantly, Tsongkhapa as well as the Chinese emperor were also considered manifestations of Manjushri, explaining in part his popularity within China and Gelug-Tibet.
The Gelugpa enjoyed increased importance amongst the emperors of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), thanks in part to Tsongkhapa’s closest disciple Shakya Yeshe’s (1354-1435) prolonged presence in the capital; from the mid-17th century on, they were the dominant theocratic power in Tibet, and the sole represented Tibetan Buddhist institution in China.
Vajrabhairava remained a prominent Buddhist icon in China under the Qing emperors, who maintained direct links with the dignitaries of the Gelugpa sect, including the Dalai and Panchen Lamas. This form of Buddhism flourished within China under Qing rule (1644-1911), inspiring the construction of numerous temples in and around the capital of Beijing, as well as the creation of ambitious cast and painted images of Vajrabhairava, to be gifted from the Chinese courts to Tibet and used for local worship. In the eighteenth century, the Qianlong Emperor (1711-1799) promoted himself as a manifestation of Manjushri, establishing his role as a spiritual and political leader. Images of Vajrabhairava, therefore, carried both religious and political implications, promoting Gelugpa spiritual practice while simultaneously endorsing the heavenly mandate of the Emperor.
The present lot exhibits the finest qualities of Tibetan and Tibeto-Chinese sculptural tradition, showcasing a dynamic representation of Vajrabhairava and Vejra Vetali in a highly symmetrical composition and a tremendous attention to detail. Considered a precious metal, Tibetan sculpture in silver are extremely rare. As such, this work must have been a special commission. Compare the present lot to similar, though smaller, silver figure of Vajrabhairava, sold at Christie’s New York on 18 September 2013, lot 325, for $267,750.