A CHLORITE SCHIST RELIEF OF SHALABHANJIKA, HOYSALA EMPIRE
Southern India, 11th-12th century. Standing in graceful tribhanga clutching the branches of the tree above with one hand, the other resting on her leg, clad in a sheer dhoti and adorned with beaded jewelry and billowing scarves, two diminutive attendants at her feet, her serene face with heavy-lidded eyes and full lips.

Provenance: From the private Luxembourg collection of Camille Mines (1950-2018), whose father Rene acquired this piece in the local trade during the early 1970s, and thence by descent.
Condition: Excellent condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, minor losses, nicks and scratches, signs of weathering and erosion, structural cracks, encrustations.

Dimensions: Height 52 cm (excl. stand) and 56 cm (incl. stand)

With an associated metal stand. (2)

The Hoysala Empire was a Kannadiga power originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka, India between the 10th and the 14th centuries. The capital of the Hoysalas was initially located at Belur, but was later moved to Halebidu. The Hoysala rulers were originally from Malenadu, an elevated region in the Western Ghats. In the 12th century, taking advantage of the warfare between the Western Chalukya Empire and Kalachuris of Kalyani, they annexed areas of present-day Karnataka and the fertile areas north of the Kaveri delta in present-day Tamil Nadu. By the 13th century, they governed most of Karnataka, minor parts of Tamil Nadu and parts of western Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in the Deccan Plateau. The Hoysala era was an important period in the development of art, architecture, and religion in South India. The empire is remembered today primarily for Hoysala architecture. Over a hundred surviving temples are scattered across Karnataka.

Shalabhanjika is a term found in Indian art and literature with a variety of meanings. In Buddhist art, it means an image of a woman or yakshi next to a tree, often holding a sprig of mango leaves. The position of the salabhanjika is also related to the position of Maya when she gave birth to Gautama Buddha under an ashoka tree in a garden in Lumbini, while grasping its branch.

Literature comparison: Compare a related schist stele depicting a shalabhanjika, dated 1150-1200 and also attributed to the Hoysala Empire, in the collection of the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, accession number 540-D5.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related sandstone figure of a shalabhanjika, 67.3 cm high, dated 10th-11th century and attributed to Rajasthan or Madhya Pradesh, at Christie's New York in Indian and Southeast Asian Art on 16 September 2014, lot 228, sold for USD 21,250.