Bodhisattva head in stucco, Gandhara

Head of bodhisattva in stucco, ancient Gandhara region, circa 3rd or 4th century CE.

• Provenance: Former Claude de Marteau collection, sold with certificate.
• H 19.5 x 14.5 cm x14.5 cm without base.
• Solid wood base, made in-house.

Gandhara Bodhisattva head, archives and provenance

This vintage photograph shows this Gandhara Bodhisattva head when it belonged to the Claude de Marteau collection. It can be identified unambiguously thanks to its sculptural features as well as the wear marks visible on this period print.

Kept with the archives of the Claude de Marteau collection, this document confirms that this work already belonged to this ensemble several decades before it came onto the market. Inventory photographs of this kind are particularly rare and valuable evidence: they make it possible to trace a sculpture’s history, confirm its inclusion in an old collection, and strengthen the quality of its provenance.

Beyond its documentary value, this archive also illustrates the coherence of the collection assembled by Claude de Marteau, in which Buddhist artworks were carefully inventoried and photographed.

This provenance is further corroborated by several sculptures visible on this photographic plate, which were later offered by Bonhams in Paris and Hong Kong during the dispersal of the Claude de Marteau collection in 2022 and 2023. This is notably the case for a schist Buddha head (1) as well as a schist panel from the Swat Valley (2).

The presence of several works now on the international market thus makes it possible to place this Bodhisattva head back in its original context and illustrates the coherence of the ensemble assembled by Claude de Marteau as early as the 1960s.