7th Mar, 2025 11:00
A Museum Treasury of Buddhist and Himalayan Art: The Peter Kienzle-Hardt Collection Part I
31
A LARGE GEMSTONE-INLAID GILT AND POLYCHROME WOOD MASK OF BHAIRAVA, NEPAL, 19TH CENTURY OR EARLIER
This lot is a museum deaccession and is therefore offered without reserve
€5,000
€10,000
€2,600 (1bid)
A buyer’s premium of 30.00% (including VAT) applies to the hammer price of this lot if your bid is successful.
Superbly carved, the bearded deity with large gilt painted eyes beneath furled brows, the forehead centered by a third eye, the pierced mouth gently parted and revealing sharp fangs, flanked by earrings in the form of snakes coiling tightly around a turquoise cabochon, his matted hair stands erect as flames of a fire, forming a dramatic halo, embellished with a skull and moon. The back with a double-door opening to a hollow compartment to house relics.
Provenance: The Kienzle Family Collection, Stuttgart, Germany. Acquired between 1950 and 1985 by siblings Else (1912-2006), Reinhold (1917-2008), and Dr. Horst Kienzle (1924-2019), during their extensive travels in Asia. Subsequently inherited by Dr. Horst Kienzle and bequeathed to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, Germany. Released through museum deaccession in 2024. The Kienzle siblings were avid travelers and passionate collectors of Asian and Islamic art. During their travels, the Kienzle’s sought out and explored temples, monasteries, and markets, always trying to find the best pieces wherever they went, investing large sums of money and forging lasting relationships to ensure they could acquire them. Their fervor and success in this pursuit is not only demonstrated by their collection but further recorded in correspondences between Horst Kienzle and several noted dignitaries, businesses and individuals in Nepal and Ladakh. Their collection had gained renown by the 1970s, but the Kienzle’s stopped acquiring new pieces around 1985. Almost thirty years later, the collection was moved to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, opened by Peter Hardt in 2014. Before his death in 2019, Horst Kienzle bequeathed his entire property to Peter Hardt and legally adopted him as his son, who has been using the name Peter Kienzle-Hardt ever since.
Condition: Very good condition with wear and natural imperfections. Few scratches, small stains, and minor soiling. The inlays with expected minor losses and fissures.
Dimensions: Height 73 cm
The deity’s diadem is centered by a diminutive head of Shiva, flanked by snakes and skulls connected by beaded swags, and backed by five-petal arch centered by rock crystal cabochons. The crown and foliate jewelry further inlaid with coral cabochons.
Newari masks such as the present lot were also constructed in bronze and terracotta. They were never actually worn but used during a special annual festival dedicated to Indra, the Indra Jatra. A pot of beer or spirits was placed behind each mask and the liquid then poured through the deity's open mouth. The consecrated beverage would then be consumed by participants of the festival with great enthusiasm. The custom of drinking as part of the Indra festival is peculiar to Nepal, and these large mask-like sculptures are unique to the country.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related inlaid polychrome mask of Bhairava, exhibited at the Festival dell'Oriente, Bologna, Italy, June 2015. Compare a related earlier polychrome wood mask of Bhairava, dated late 14th-15th century, 76.2 cm high, in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 61.359.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 13 September 2011, lot 1008
Price: USD 22,500 or approx. EUR 32,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A wood Bhairava mask, Nepal, 16th/17th century
Expert remark: Compare the related manner of carving and polychromy. Note the lack of inlay work, the earlier dating, and the size (81.2 cm).
Superbly carved, the bearded deity with large gilt painted eyes beneath furled brows, the forehead centered by a third eye, the pierced mouth gently parted and revealing sharp fangs, flanked by earrings in the form of snakes coiling tightly around a turquoise cabochon, his matted hair stands erect as flames of a fire, forming a dramatic halo, embellished with a skull and moon. The back with a double-door opening to a hollow compartment to house relics.
Provenance: The Kienzle Family Collection, Stuttgart, Germany. Acquired between 1950 and 1985 by siblings Else (1912-2006), Reinhold (1917-2008), and Dr. Horst Kienzle (1924-2019), during their extensive travels in Asia. Subsequently inherited by Dr. Horst Kienzle and bequeathed to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, Germany. Released through museum deaccession in 2024. The Kienzle siblings were avid travelers and passionate collectors of Asian and Islamic art. During their travels, the Kienzle’s sought out and explored temples, monasteries, and markets, always trying to find the best pieces wherever they went, investing large sums of money and forging lasting relationships to ensure they could acquire them. Their fervor and success in this pursuit is not only demonstrated by their collection but further recorded in correspondences between Horst Kienzle and several noted dignitaries, businesses and individuals in Nepal and Ladakh. Their collection had gained renown by the 1970s, but the Kienzle’s stopped acquiring new pieces around 1985. Almost thirty years later, the collection was moved to the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Radevormwald, opened by Peter Hardt in 2014. Before his death in 2019, Horst Kienzle bequeathed his entire property to Peter Hardt and legally adopted him as his son, who has been using the name Peter Kienzle-Hardt ever since.
Condition: Very good condition with wear and natural imperfections. Few scratches, small stains, and minor soiling. The inlays with expected minor losses and fissures.
Dimensions: Height 73 cm
The deity’s diadem is centered by a diminutive head of Shiva, flanked by snakes and skulls connected by beaded swags, and backed by five-petal arch centered by rock crystal cabochons. The crown and foliate jewelry further inlaid with coral cabochons.
Newari masks such as the present lot were also constructed in bronze and terracotta. They were never actually worn but used during a special annual festival dedicated to Indra, the Indra Jatra. A pot of beer or spirits was placed behind each mask and the liquid then poured through the deity's open mouth. The consecrated beverage would then be consumed by participants of the festival with great enthusiasm. The custom of drinking as part of the Indra festival is peculiar to Nepal, and these large mask-like sculptures are unique to the country.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related inlaid polychrome mask of Bhairava, exhibited at the Festival dell'Oriente, Bologna, Italy, June 2015. Compare a related earlier polychrome wood mask of Bhairava, dated late 14th-15th century, 76.2 cm high, in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 61.359.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 13 September 2011, lot 1008
Price: USD 22,500 or approx. EUR 32,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A wood Bhairava mask, Nepal, 16th/17th century
Expert remark: Compare the related manner of carving and polychromy. Note the lack of inlay work, the earlier dating, and the size (81.2 cm).
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Auction: A Museum Treasury of Buddhist and Himalayan Art: The Peter Kienzle-Hardt Collection Part I, 7th Mar, 2025
NEW: WATCH OUR VIDEO ABOUT THE PROVENANCE
This treasury of art, assembled over decades by the Kienzle siblings and perserved by their sole heir Peter Kienzle-Hardt, reflects not only their fascination with Asian culture but also their respect for the heritage of the regions they explored. Learn more.
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