Country Group: South and Southeast Asia (Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam)

Item id: 8027

Singular Hindu bronze-I believe this to be 14/15thC Burmese Ava imitating Indian Chola. I do not believe it is Indian for a variety of reasons. The primary ones are that it is hollow (virtually all Hindu bronzes from this period are solid-cast), the patina appears SE Asian, the face looks Burmese, The base and casting styles look more SE Asian than Indian. I've owned this figure 25 years and searched and never found a comparable piece. With more than 25 years experience, and trying to figure this piece out all that time, I do feel it is Burmese and likely 14/15thC, though it could be earlier or later. I believe it may have been buried, or have been in a nome or temple that burned down and then stayed in the remains for some time. When I got it, there was a thick encrustation, and the face had little detail and the ornamentation around the waist did not show clearly (looked more like a misshapen piece), the ball in the had was not round etc. The face, especially mouth and eyes did not show well. With a bit of museum wax, soft brushes, toothpicks, and many careful hours the underlying piece appeared. I did this same process several times over the first 15 years I owned it and each time the underlying piece emerged a bit more. At a certain point I stopped, as I did not want to harm the patina, and it felt like I had gotten to the "right" point. Very sensitively modeled, with a deeply serene countenance. Has the feel of Ava sculpture (14-17thC), though I am truly unsure which group made it. Very good size at 9.25" tall, diameter of base is roughly 3 1/8", height on custom stand is 11.25 inches. Long time personal favorite.