STATUETTE DU CINQUIÈME SAKYA TRIDZIN, JETSUN DRAGPA GYALTSEN, EN ALLIAGE DE CUIVRE DORÉ
TIBET, XVE/XVIE SIÈCLE
A Tibetan inscription around the rim of the base:
རྗེ་བཙུན་གྲགས་རྒྱལ་ལ་ན་མ།
Translated: 'Homage to Jetsun Dragpa Gyaltsen!'
Himalayan Art Resources item no. 1815
18.1 cm (7 1/8 in.) high 
Footnotes:
A GILT COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF THE FIFTH SAKYA TRIDZIN, JETSUN DRAGPA GYALTSEN  
TIBET, 15TH/16TH CENTURY 

Provenance 
Sotheby's, New York, before 1976

This gilt bronze represents Jetsun Dragpa Gyaltsen (1147-1216), the Fifth Tridzin, or Throne Holder, of the Sakya order of Tibetan Buddhism. Dragpa Gyaltsen is quintessentially recognized by his shorn cut, groomed facial hair, and a full-sleeved layman's cloak. Like his father and older brother, Dragpa Gyaltsen was not a monk, though he spent most of his life in meditation, study, and teaching. Consequently, he is shown wearing a layman's long-sleeved garment underneath the meditation cloak draped over his shoulders. Regarded as the third of the Five Founding Fathers of the Sakya tradition (Jetsun Gongma Nga), Dragpa Gyaltsen is revered as a peerless tantric master, believed to have conversed directly with tantric deities while developing many of the Sakya's core teachings (Dinwiddie (ed.), Portraits of the Masters, 2003, p. 207). As his impact in the field of tantric theory and practice would never be surpassed in the Sakya tradition, he is often represented with the same attributes and pose—crossing the vajra and ghanta before his chest—as the Primordial Buddha Vajradhara, who is considered the divine progenitor of most tantric cycles. 

This splendid portrayal of Dragpa Gyaltsen comes from a set depicting the historical and legendary teachers of the Lamdre tradition. Also known as the Margapala Instruction Lineage and the 'Path within the Result', Lamdre is a system of tantric meditation, teachings, and rituals that became the Sakya order's foundational practice. Numerous portraits from this set are preserved in museum and private collections, including a figure of Virupa (Heller, Tibetan Art, 1999, p. 164, no. 89); Mahasiddha Avadhutipa (Zhang (ed.), Dependent Arising: Himalayan Art, 2017, pp. 124 & 260, no. 22); Drogmi Lotsawa Shakya Yeshe (fig. 1; Museum Rietberg, Zurich BA 226; Sachen Kunga Nyingpo (Arts of Asia, May - June 1998, advertisement); Sonam Tsemo (Huang, Studies on the History of gDan-sa-mthil Monastery of Tibet, 2016, p. 5); Sakya Pandita (Rubin Museum of Art, New York; HAR 65460); and Chogyal Phagpa (Christie's, New York, 15 September 2015, lot 91). Much like the following work, each of these bronzes is seated atop a circular base with wide, unfurling lotus petals and an inscription hammered in pointillé along the lower rim. Also noteworthy are the similar floral embellishments and piled folds of his clothes to that of the Sachen Kunga Nyingpo and Sonam Tsemo within this set.

For the figures listed in this essay, please refer to our printed or digital catalogue.

銅鎏金五世薩迦法王扎巴堅贊像
西藏 十五/十六世紀

來源
蘇富比，紐約，1976年前

此尊鎏金銅像呈現傑尊 · 扎巴堅贊（1147-1216），為第五世薩迦法王，又稱座主。扎巴堅贊因其極為經典的整齊短髮、延伸至面部之髮鬚，以及俗家弟子之長袖衣袍而得以清晰辨認。如同他的父親和哥哥一樣，扎巴堅贊並非出家僧人，儘管他曾將一生中大部分時光用於冥想、學習和教學。因此，其觀想所披之外衣下見一件長袖俗家服裝。作為薩迦五祖之第三祖，扎巴堅贊被尊崇為無與倫比的密宗大師，據信他能夠直接與密宗神明交談，並發展了許多薩迦派之核心教義（見Dinwiddie編, 《大師肖像》，2003年，頁207）。由於扎巴堅贊於密宗理論和實踐領域之影響力在薩迦派中無人能及，他時常被呈現於原初佛金剛總持之姿態與法器——手中交叉金剛杵及金剛鈴。金剛總持被視為大多數密宗教法之神聖始祖，故可見扎巴堅贊之崇高地位。

這尊華美的扎巴堅贊像出自一套呈現「道果」法脈歷史上及傳說中之偉大上師之造像組。「道果」法脈為一套包含密宗之觀想、教義和儀式之體系，為薩迦派之根本性實踐基礎。造像組之多尊現保存於博物館以及私人收藏之中，包括毘魯巴像（見Heller，《Tibetan Art》，1999年，頁164，編號89），大成就者阿瓦度帝巴像（《緣起——喜馬拉雅藝術》，2017年，頁124及260，編號22，卓彌釋迦益西像（圖1，蘇黎世瑞特堡博物館藏，編號BA 226），薩欽貢嘎寧波像（《Arts of Asia》，1998年5-6月刊，推廣頁），索南孜摩像（黃，《Studies on the History of gDan-sa-mthil Monastery of Tibet》，2016年，頁5)，薩迦班智達像（紐約魯賓藝術博物館，喜馬拉雅藝術資源網65460號），以及八思巴像（佳士得，紐約，2015年9月15日，拍品91）。正如此尊造像，上述造像每一尊皆安坐於一圓形、帶有舒展花瓣之底座，且其底緣帶有細點構成之銘文。此外，值得關注的是上述薩欽貢嘎寧波像以及索南孜摩像衣物上所刻花紋以及衣褶垂落而形成的褶皺，此尊扎巴堅贊像亦然。

關於文中所提及之參考圖，請參閱此場拍賣之電子或紙質圖錄。
Lot to be sold without reserve.
This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: *
* VAT on imported items at a reduced rate of 5.5% on the hammer price and the prevailing rate on buyer's premium if the item remains in EU.

TVA sur les objets importés à un taux réduit de 5.5% sur le prix d'adjudication et un taux en vigueur sur la prime d'achat dans le cas où l'objet reste dans l'Union Européenne.
For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

Very good condition overall, with a minor nick to the figure's right cheekbone. Minor scratches to the upper area of the lotus base at the front and minor dents to the both the back of the figure and to the upper area of the lotus base at the back. Minor spots of greenish corrosion to a few recessed areas of the base. Smoky black residue in recessed areas from exposure to temple lamps within the culture. Remains of white pigment in the hair and red pigment in the lips. The piece survives with its separately cast vajra and bell attributes. The piece survives with its original and undisturbed, circular consecration plate.
Please contact Alvina Ang (Alvina.Ang@bonhams.com) for related condition report images and video.