Silver Alloy Figure of Vishnu - Java 12th / 13th Century

This is an excellent and rare Majapahit silver bronze sculpture of Vishnu from central Java and dating circa 13th century. Silver bronzes were made from a silver bronze alloy where silver is substituted for zinc in the alloy mix, resulting in this unique silver colored metal. This is an exceptionally rare rendering of Vishnu in that it includes his mount, Garuda on the front of the base (socle). This indicates a strong influence of the north-east Indian sculptural traditions. In addition, Vishnu is rendered with his other attributes, namely the Sankha, or conch shell, a Cakra disk and a club (gada). The early bronze sculptures made in Java were highly inspired by bronzes brought to Java by early traders from southern India. During the Majapahit Dynasty, Hinduism and Buddhism merged and they were each equally practiced. As with most all early Javanese bronzes this is cast in the lost wax method with additional details added by chasing and chiseling techniques. The detailing seen on this masterpiece is most exceptional and of the highest quality. Please refer to our detail photos and in particular the detail of Vishnu’s hand holding the Sankha. The superb delicacy and grace of his fingers speaks for itself. This silver bronze sculpture is in excellent original condition and with a superb original patina. The patina is especially appealing in that it has some hues of turquoise. This museum quality silver bronze is 23 cm just over 9 inches in height. It weighs just shy of 1.45 kilograms or just over three pounds. It is a genuine 13th century sculpture and more details and images of it can be found on our website under the title of bodhissatva''s,buddha''s and Gods. This is the nearest period sculpture you will find without paying the big prices of equivalent indian sculptures from this period in history ! Realistic price of £1795 gbp to include free shipping. Viewings,etc arranged and you can see more of these offerings on my website.