Live Auction 11930AN INQUIRING MIND: AMERICAN COLLECTING OF JAPANESE AND KOREAN ART
A wood figure of Gakko Bosatsu (Candraprabha)
Lot 6

A wood figure of Gakko Bosatsu (Candraprabha)

Late Heian - early Kamakura period (12th - 13th century)

Closed15 April 2016

Price Realised

USD 40,000

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A wood figure of Gakko Bosatsu (Candraprabha)
Late Heian - early Kamakura period (12th - 13th century)
Carved from cypress wood in single-block technique (ichiboku-zukuri) as a standing Gekko Bosatsu, the figure dressed in flowing robes with scarves around the shoulders and arms, the hair gathered up into a high coiffure the left arm in varadamudra ("fulfilling of the vow" mudra) and the right arm raised, set on a carved-wood lotus stand
32 ½ in. (82.6 cm.) high

Private collection, Japan

Specialist note

Known literally as the bodhisattvas of lunar and solar radiance, the bodhisattva Gakko and counterpart Nikko are the representatives of the bodhisattva realm presided over by Yakushi Nyorai (Bhaisajyaguru-vaiduryaprabharaja), the Buddha of Healing. They are most often represented as attendants to Yakushi. This triad enjoyed great popularity in Japan from as early as the 8th century, with representative examples housed in Nara's Todaiji and Horyuji Temples. Typically, the bodhisattva Gakko is shown holding a lunar disc in the palm of one hand or mounted on a lotus stem. Nikko holds a corresponding solar disc.