A SET OF FIVE PAINTINGS FROM AN ARHAT SETTIBET, 19TH-EARLY 20TH CENTURY23 x 151⁄2 in. (58.4 x 39.4 cm.) (image, each)Details23 x 151⁄2 in. (58.4 x 39.4 cm.) (image, each)ProvenanceOriental Gem Co., London, by 1971.‌The John C. and Susan L. Huntington Collection, Columbus, Ohio.Literature‌Himalayan Art Resources, item no. 24804.This charming set of smaller-format paintings depict Buddha Shakyamuni along with a group of figures known as the Sixteen Arhats, an iconographic grouping that has its origins in very early Mahayana Buddhism and which was a popular subject in Tibet and China from the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) onwards. Included within the group are the patron, Hvashang, and the attendant, Dharmatala, as well as the four Directional Guardian Kings; the present set of paintings is distinguished by its inclusion of a bevy of retinue deities. The central painting depicts Buddha Shakyamuni at center on a double-lotus base with his hands in bhumisparshamudra. He is flanked by a pair of disciples holding alms bowls and khakkhara, the metal-ring staff used by monks to alert insects and small animals of their passing; two of the Sixteen Arhats sit at the lower center of the painting either side of an altar laden with offerings. Two of the other paintings depict arhats seated within verdant landscapes, each holding an implement or dressed in a certain garb to help viewers discern their identities. Another painting depicts the attendant, Dharmatala, carrying a wooden chest on his back and accompanied by his trademark tiger, as well as the Directional Guardian Kings Vaishravana (North) holding a parasol and Virupaksha (West) supporting a stupa. The final painting depicts the patron, Hvashang, rotund in appearance with children frolicking about him, with the other two Guardian Kings at bottom, Dhrtarashtra (East) playing the vina and Virudhaka (South) brandishing a sword. ---