18TH/19TH CENTURY

Figures of Buddhistic lions are usually found in pairs, with the male depicted with his front paw resting on a brocade ball, and the female with her cub clambering up her chest. They were produced in the Dehua kilns, typically smaller in size than the colored models produced at the Jindezhen kilns. Originally intended for the domestic market, such pairs of Buddhistic lions also became popular in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries.