Khas Guardian figure

Guardian figure, bahan
Khas people,
Bajura district, Nepal
19th century or earlier
Wood, glass eyes
Height: 26 in / 66 cm
Provenance:
Ex private French collection
Published in: Cortes, Jean-Luc,
La Statuaire Primitive de L'Ouest du
Népal, 2011, plate 1

These figures served as village and household guardians in the far west of Nepal. Commonly mislabeled "spring figures," they arise from a different cultural impulse than that of the "primitive" black-patinated masking tradition found more to the east, often developing a thick smoked interior patina or a heavily eroded surface from exterior exposure. They can be squatting or standing, but always have the arms up and hands together, as in prayer. This is a superb example, an archetypal expression of this unique art form.

Object Presented by:
Thomas Murray
T.: + 1 415.378.0716