Estimated value: €1,200 – €1,800
Old bronze Buddha head, manufactured using pre-industrial lost-wax casting technique. Despite its compact size, the object is relatively heavy, indicating a dense, traditional bronze alloy and thick cast walls. The head is hollow cast and features a finely modeled ushnisha, soft facial features, and carefully elaborated hair structures.
Microscopic examination confirms natural multi-layered patina build-up and scattered remnants of original fire gilding, visible in recessed areas and along relief zones. The gold traces lie beneath and between old oxidation layers and show no characteristics of modern gilding or later retouches. Wear patterns extend through the patina and gilding remnants, consistent with long-term natural use and aging.
UV examination shows no fluorescent areas, ruling out modern coatings, lacquers, or recent interventions. The opening in the neck is old and patinated along with the rest of the piece, functioning as a technical attachment point, indicating assembly in a composite sculpture or architectural context. This type of construction detail is found in older Himalayan sculptures and is not a later damage.
Design, material use, patina, microscopic traces, and UV results convincingly place this Buddha head within the older Buddhist sculptural tradition of the Himalayan region, likely in the Nepalese sphere, without forcing this as an absolute origin.
Dimensions: height 16 cm
Weight: 1.3 kg
Material: bronze
Origin: Himalayan region (attributed)
Dating: approx. 17th–18th century
