Stucco steward’s head, Gandhara

Head of a steward in stucco, ancient Gandhara region, 2nd/4th century CE.

• W 10.5 cm x D 10.5 cm x H 11.5 cm
• On base Total H = 22.5 cm
• Provenance: Former Claude de Marteau collection
• Sold with certificate

Gandhara Steward Head, Archives and Provenance

This vintage photograph shows precisely this Gandhara stucco steward head when it belonged to the Claude de Marteau collection. It can be unambiguously identified among the Buddha heads and statues appearing on this plate thanks to its modeling as well as the alterations visible on this period print.

Preserved with the archives of the Claude de Marteau collection, this document attests that this work already belonged to this ensemble several decades before being brought to market. Inventory photographs of this type constitute a particularly rare and valuable testimony: they make it possible to trace the journey of a sculpture, confirm its belonging to an old collection, and strengthen the quality of its provenance.

Beyond its documentary interest, this archive also illustrates the coherence of the collection assembled by Claude de Marteau, where Gandhara works were carefully inventoried and photographed.

This provenance is further corroborated by several sculptures visible on this photographic plate, which were subsequently offered by Bonhams in Paris, New York, and Hong Kong during the dispersal of the Claude de Marteau collection in 2022 and 2023. This is notably the case for the stucco Buddha head (1) visible on it.

The presence of several works now passed through the international market thus makes it possible to place this steward head in its original context and illustrates the coherence of the ensemble assembled by Claude de Marteau from the 1960s onwards.