AN EKADASHAMUKHA BRONZE 18TH CENTURYSino-Tibetan. Fire-gilt and finely incised bronze with Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion in its Ekadashamukha form with eleven faces and eight arms. Provenance: A private collection in Riga, Latvia.Condition: Excellent condition with old wear and good natural patina. Some minor traces of use and a few minuscule nicks here and there. Unsealed.Weight: 821.4 grams.Dimensions: Height 20 cm.Ekadashamukha is standing in Samapada with his principle hands in Anjali mudra, upper and lower left hands hold a lotus blossom and a ewer respectively. The deity is dressed in a richly decorated gown with precious jewelry, wears pointed leaf crowns and is framed by celestial bands. At the upper left shoulder is a deer fur. The first nine faces are peaceful, the tenth is wrathful and the top head shows the portrayal of Buddha Amitabha.At one time the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara made a promise that should he give rise to thoughts of self-benefit may the head break into 10 pieces and the body into 1000. After continuously witnessing the misery of beings in various states of existence, discouraged, he gave rise to thoughts of seeking only his own happiness. At that very instant the head and body shattered. Calling out to Amitabha, the buddha came forth and spoke words of encouragement. Gathering up the 10 pieces of the head, Amitabha constructed 10 faces representing the 10 perfections. Gathering the 1000 pieces of the body, he constructed another with 1000 hands, each with an eye on the palm, representing the 1000 buddhas of the Golden Eon. Finally he placed a duplicate of his own head at the crown, illuminating the entire threefold universe.For a closely related yet significantly smaller Ekadashamukha bronze, also dating to the 18th century, compare with Christies New York in ‘Himalayan, Indian and South East Asian Art’, March 15th, 2017, lot 201, this sculpture also being listed in Himalayan Art Resources as item no. 24299.十八世紀十一首觀音銅像漢藏，銅鎏金造像展現了十一首十一臉八臂觀音。 來源：拉脫維亞里加私人收藏品相：優秀，舊磨損，自然包漿，一些輕微的使用痕跡與劃痕，未封底。重量：821.4 克尺寸：高 20 厘米