Osian's Auction Catalogue Indian Antiquities Modern Contemporary Fine Arts and Books | April 2017

46 | Osian’s–Connoisseurs of Art Property formerly from the Angela & Mischa Jucker Collection 19* Anonymous, Tibeto-Chinese School Thangka Illustrating Chaturbhujamahakala, the Four Armed Mahakala Depicted in Dark Blue, Standing in Alidhasana (Drawing The bow posture) with his Principal Hands Holding a Karttrika (chopper) and a Kapala, Frothing Blood and the other two hold a Sword and a Spear Distemper on cloth, 18th century 25.8 x 17.5 in (65.5 x 44.5 cm) Provenance Acquired by Osian’s-Connoisseurs of Art from Sotheby’s 28th March 2006 (New York) Sale of ‘The Jucker Collection of Himalayan Paintings’; Formerly in the Angela & Mischa Jucker Collection, USA INR 2,000,000 – 3,000,000 USD 29,850 – 44,780 Antiquity / A.S.I. Registered A.S.I. No. DHL-I 007342 Non-Exportable Item Introduction by Mrs. Angela Jucker-Grunauer and Dr. Ernst ‘Mischa’ Jucker rpt. in Sotheby’s ‘The Jucker Collection of Himalayan Paintings’ Auction Catalogue, New York 28th March 2006; pp.14-15 “The 42 years of collecting of and living with thangkas (sic) are intricately linked with a couple of unexpected, even peculiar events. As a young research-chemist working in a major pharmaceutical enterprise in Basel, Switzerland, I was entrusted in 1952 with the task of founding a new department for syntheses of new drugs…a few years later I was able to deliver results, leading to new synthetic medicines. Many patents were filed and scientific papers published, and as a consequence, I was invited by the Government of India, in 1959, to deliver a few lectures, first in Puri, Orissa, and a week later on the occasion of the All India Science Congress in Bhubaneshwar, Orissa… The Congress ended with a final banquet, and I had the chance and privilege to be seated near the then Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, who inaugurated the Congress. Mr. Nehru was interested in modern drug research, almost non-existent in India in those days, and, having given him some clarifications, he reciprocated by acquainting me with some facts about India’s aboriginals, their way of life, their religions and cultures. Mr. Nehru’s fascinating review left me with a great impression, and after the Congress I took some time to visit shops dealing in antiquities, hoping to find objects linked with the Indian tribal and rural people. During one of these strolls, I came across a small, strange painting on cloth and acquired it because I immediately liked it. This was our first Tibetan thangka/mandala and the beginning of our collection. Later, by chance again, Angela and I met with Dr. Olschak, a well known Tibetologist who explained to us the purpose and role of thangkas, and, thus awakened our interest for this manifestation of Tibetan religion and culture. It was difficult to understand, how these People, living, for hundreds of years in almost total isolation from the rest of the world, developed such outstanding, magnificent objects of art. Only later did we begin to understand the spread of India’s influence to the Himalayas via Buddhism. We decided to spend time and our then small resources on the acquisition of such paintings, hoping also to contribute a little to the world-wide effort to save these artifacts from destruction. From that time on, Angela and I never stopped looking for thangka and our old friend and advisor, Prof. P. Pal helped us with his enormous knowledge and guidance. Various great collectors in the USA and elsewhere visited us in Ettingen and also helped us better understand Himalayan art in general. Finally, Hugo Kreijger suggested writing the catalogues, thus providing interested parties with the opportunity to see pictures of some outstanding specimens in what became known as “The Jucker Collection.” During our uncountable trips to India, Nepal and Sikkim, Angela and I managed to find a few exceptional thangkas and I was lucky to meet an important dealer in antiquities, Shiv Batra… During this epoch, we were fortunate to assemble some of our most cherished objects…In the middle of the 1960s, I was politically engaged in India and had to visit this country so often…I met Mrs. Gandhi a few times in her office for private discussions… after talking business, Mrs. Gandhi once inquired about my private interests and I told her about collecting Indian folk bronzes and Nepalese and Tibetan thangkas. She knew practically nothing about these manifestations of art and asked whether I could publish a couple of articles in an Indian periodical. Since the then Chief Editor of Illustrated Weekly, Khushwant Singh, was a close, long-standing friend, having stayed a few times in our home in Switzerland, it presented no problems to publish two illustrated articles on the above subjects, and as a consequence, we became quite well known to a number of persons in India. From that time on, Indian folk bronzes and Nepalese and Tibetan thangkas started coming to us by themselves and collecting became much easier than it was before… It is with sadness that due to my having reached almost biblical age, and due to our careful planning of a new phase of our life, we have decided to part with these ‘children of ours…whatever we “possess”, we keep only for a while, being more “caretakers” than “owners”, so we can part with “our” beloved thangka collection without shedding too many tears.”