dancing with the left foot resting on a prostrate figure supported by a circular lotus throne, with arm bands and anklets inlaid with silver beading and jewelry set with turquoise, and holding a skull cup and kartrika Himalayan Art Resources item no. 13479.

Philip Goldman Collection, London.
Sotheby’s New York, 21st March 2002, lot 107.
Collection of Edwin and Cherie Silver.  Sotheby’s is delighted to present works from one of the great American collections of non-western art: The Collection of Edwin and Cherie Silver. This famous Los Angeles collection includes impeccable examples of classical South Asian, African, Pre-Columbian, Oceanic, and American Indian Art. The Silvers built their collection beginning in the 1960s, during the golden age of American post-war collecting in these categories. Works from the Silver Collection have been shown at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The National Museum for African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., The Los Angeles County Museum at UCLA, and the Center of African Art, New York.

In the memorable words of their children, Daniel Silver, Donna Silver Frajnd and Karen Silver Horowitz: “The works of art that entered the Silver Collection are expressions of our parent’s individual tastes, and their eye for both elegance and strength of form. The Silver Collection is the result of their dedication and shared passion for these extraordinary art forms. Each object has a voice in the chorus. Each acquisition bears a story evoking happy memories of our parents, and of the unique and wonderful experience of growing up amidst these stunning objects. These remembered experiences are those that shaped our family and our lives, and continue to enrich the three of us to this day.”

“Tantra,” Hayward Gallery, Arts Council of Great Britain, September 30 – November 14, 1971

Philip Rawson, Tantra, Hayward Gallery exhibition catalogue, London, 1971, no. 116, p. 38.
Ulrich von Schroeder, Indo-Tibetan Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1981, 124F, p. 453.

Good overall condition. With traces of polychromy to hair. Some losses to original inlaid stones. Minor bending to crown and ritual implements. Loss to sash element at crown behind proper right ear. Some areas of silver inlay now missing. Remaining silver beading at proper left arm and proper right ankle now tarnished. Original base sealed and intact.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Vajra Nairatmya is a Tantric yidam or meditational deity, and also the consort of Hevajra. The divine consorts are often depicted in yabyum or ecstatic union, as well as individuals in sculpture and painting. In the current work, Nairatmya stands in joyful ardhaparyankasana or dancing posture, trampling a supine figure underfoot. Her right hand is raised holding a kartrika or chopper, the left hand at the waist holding a kapala or skull cup. She bares her fangs in a fearsome grimace, and wears a five-skull crown and a garland of severed heads, as outlined in the Hevajra and Samputa Tantras. The dakini Nairatmya wears elaborate jewelry inlaid with semi-precious stones, and the tantric adornments of the six bone ornaments, which represent the six paramitas or perfections. These textural bone ornaments appear in beaded rows, and also represent the Five Dhyani Buddhas: (1) the crown of the head, symbolizing dhyana or concentration and Buddha Akshobhya; (2) the earrings that symbolize kshanti or patience and the Buddha Amitabha; (3) the necklace that symbolizes dana or generosity and Buddha Ratnasambhava; (4) the armlets and anklets that symbolize shila or discipline and the Buddha Vairocana; (5) the girdle that symbolizes virya or exertion and Buddha Amoghasiddhi; and (6) the crisscrossed torso ornament that symbolizes prajña or wisdom and Buddha Vajradhara.

Compare other thirteenth and fourteenth century gem-set gilt figures inlaid with silver beading indicating pearl jewelry, see Ulrich von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculptures in Tibet: Volume I, 2001, 257A & B, pp. 1034-5.

Also compare the lotus leaf design of the pedestal with a fourteenth century gilt-bronze figure of Ushinishvijaya, see Helmut Uhlig, On the Path to Enlightenment: The Berti Aschmann Foundation of Tibetan Art at the Museum Rietberg, Zurich, 1995, cat. no. 98, p.153; and also a gilt-bronze figure of a six-armed yidam in Sotheby's New York, 16th March 2016, lot 712.