Description:

A LARGE BRONZE ANTHROPOMORPHIC FIGURE, INDIA, GANGETIC PLAINS, 2ND MILLENNIUM BCE
Gangetic Plains, India, 2nd millennium BCE

Description:
Cast bronze with broad flaring limbs and spiraling arm terminals, the figure is stylized in a highly abstract anthropomorphic form with a domed head and armless trunk, possibly intended for ritual or votive use. The surface bears a rich, encrusted green and pale blue patina consistent with prolonged burial and age-related oxidation. Such forms are associated with tribal or proto-urban cultures of the early Indian subcontinent, particularly from the Ganges Valley or Chota Nagpur Plateau.

These iconic forms are among the rarest and most enigmatic bronzes of early Indian metallurgy, often interpreted as ancestral figures, fertility symbols, or tribal deities.

Dimensions: Length: 38 cm

Comparable examples:

  • A comparable anthropomorphic bronze figure from the Gangetic Plains, dated to circa 2000–1000 BCE, sold at Bonhams, Indian, Himalayan & Southeast Asian Art, New York, 19 March 2018, Lot 3114, for $22,500.

  • A similar but smaller stylised bronze figure attributed to the Copper Hoard Culture, sold at Sotheby’s, Arts of the Islamic World & India, London, 27 October 2021, Lot 68, for £16,250.

  • An anthropomorphic figure from the same region and period, from the Collection of Dr. Ananda Coomaraswamy, sold at Christie’s, London, 10 June 2015, Lot 135, for £18,750.

Note:
Bronzes of this type are commonly associated with the so-called “Copper Hoards,” a broad category of prehistoric Indian metalwork characterized by enigmatic forms and undefined functions. They provide a rare insight into early tribal or pre-Vedic ritual practices and regional metallurgical traditions in ancient India.

 

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May 6, 2025 1:00 PM BST
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