Provenance:
Th. Hustinx, The Hague, Netherlands
American Private Collection, acquired in 1983
The figure’s tribhanga posture gives the yakshi a gentle sense of movement. Her weight shifts through the hips, while the raised left arm extends the body upward, and the legs taper toward the base. The broad torso is modeled in full, rounded forms, with the swelling breasts, narrow waist, and curving hips giving the figure a voluptuous appearance.
She wears a broad necklace together with a large earring and an armlet around the upper arm. Around the hips, the elaborate katibandha, or ornamental girdle, forms the principal decorative element. A narrow band encircles the waist above rows of closely spaced, bead-like forms, while floral and faceted motifs create a richly-patterned band across the hips.
A pendant sash falls from the waist between the legs and at the side. The right hand originally held a lotus bud, while the raised left arm supported an object above the shoulder whose identity is uncertain.
A yakshi is an ancient female nature spirit associated with fertility, abundance, and the natural world. Yakshis and their male counterparts, yakshas, were also linked to Kubera, the god of wealth, while their voluptuous forms and rich ornament conveyed prosperity. Such imagery was readily incorporated into Buddhist and Jain architecture as an auspicious presence. This sculpture formed part of a sandstone railing surrounding a Buddhist stupa, where such figures helped to demarcate the sacred space within.
