A CIZHOU FIGURE OF ZHENWU

MING DYNASTY, 15TH CENTURY

Details

A CIZHOU FIGURE OF ZHENWU
MING DYNASTY, 15TH CENTURY
The deity is painted in dark and russet brown on a white slip under a clear glaze. He is modelled with his hair loose and feet bare, wearing long flowing robes and with a snake-coiled tortoise at his feet. He is seated on a throne raised on a rectangular waisted plinth.
12 in. (30.5 cm.) high

Brought to you by

Alexis Yuen

Check the condition report or get in touch for additional information about this

ayuen@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2599

If you wish to view the condition report of this lot, please sign in to your account.

View condition report

Lot Essay

Compare with a similar Cizhou figure of Zhenwu sold in our New York rooms, 18 September 2003, lot 289. A very similar figure to the one sold in New York was unearthed in Miyun Country, Beijing which is now in the Beijing Cultural Relics Research Institute (see Urban Life in the Song, Yuan & Ming, Singapore, 1994, p. 70).

Zhenwu, The Supreme Emperor of the Dark Heaven, is the Daoist deity of the North. The tortoise and the snake, motifs associated with the north and winter, are frequently depicted with him.

More from Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art

View All