Mandalay Marble Buddha Head & Stand

This head of the Buddha has been carved from a single piece of marble and would have been part of a larger statue. The face is broad, squarish and flat with little attempt to show the underlying bone structure. This is a feature of the late Ava period. The eyes have a passive expression and the lips are up-turned. The head has a bud-like cranial protuberance or usnisha to signify the Buddha’s wisdom. The ear lobes are elongated, reminding us of the Buddha’s origins from a royal family.

The hair, eyes and eyebrows are delineated in black pigment.

Marble images of the Buddha were a speciality of stone carvers in Mandalay, which has two main marble quarries – one in the Sagyin Hills north of Mandalay and the other near Kyauk-hse, south of Mandalay.

The image lacks the broad headband or fillet that became popular in Burmese Buddha images from the late 18th century onwards. The use of black pigment rather than lacquer to decorate the image also suggests an 18th rather than a 19th century dating.

The bust is fixed to a good-quality, custom-made stand, and is in a fine, stable condition.