. Sculpture “Arhat” in the Collection of the Khanenko Museum: History, Iconographical and Technological Particularities

The sculpture “Arhat” (2114 ДВ) in the Buddhist collection of The Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum of Arts grasps the particular attention of the scholars taking into account its connection with the famous persons – the 13th Dalai Lama, Pyotr Kozlov, and most likely with Nicholas Roerich and his elder son George Roerich. According to the memorial sign on the sculpture, the art piece is the 13th Dalai Lama’s present to Russian traveler Pyotr Kozlov in 1905 at Urga, capital of Mongolia. The “Arhat” was bought by the museum in 1969 as a part of a big collection of Buddhist art from Velichko V. S. (Moscow). The article touches on the historical events that forced the Tibetan ruler to arrive in Urga in 1905, and on the basis of documents and eyewitness accounts, sheds light on the circumstances of the Dalai Lama’s meeting with Pyotr Kozlov. The authors provide some indirect arguments that “Velichko’s collection” could belong to the Roerich family. The authors also give comments on the iconography of the sculpture, identifying it as an arhat or as a teacher. Arguments are also given on the sculpture’s origin and dating – Tibet, the 19th century – not later than 1905. Besides, the results of x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy are revealed in the article. It was shown that the figure was made from two different types of metal – copper (torso, shoulders, and legs) and brass with a high percentage of zinc (hands and ears). Surface of the figure is artificially patinated. Collecting all data authors propose to make the corrections in the inventory information of the sculpture.