TANG DYNASTY (AD 618-907)

Details

A GREY LIMESTONE BUDDHIST STELE
TANG DYNASTY (AD 618-907)
The arched niche is centered by a figure of Buddha seated in dhyanasana on a pedestal throne, his right hand raised and his left resting on his knee. He is flanked by a pair of bodhisattvas, one of whom holds a willow branch and a kundika vase. An inscription carved below may be translated as “Zhangjian respectfully made this in the first year, third month, first day of the Hejing reign on Daqi,” and another inscription on the proper left side, may be translated “collected by Ruan family from Yangzhou in the seventh year of Jiaqing (1802),” followed by a two-character seal, Bo Yuan (Ruan Yuan's courtesy name).
13 5/8 in. (34.6 cm.) high

Provenance

Carl Jung (1875-1961) Collection, Zurich, by repute.
Frances G. Wickes (1875-1967) Collection, New York.
Priscilla Luke Collection, New York, by 1961.
Edith Noss Collection, New Jersey, 1962.
Ellie Whitney Collection, New Jersey, 1995.

Lot Essay

Compare the stone stele of this shape that is similarly carved in high relief with a seated figure of Buddha flanked by two bodhisattvas standing on waisted lotus plinths, that bears a dedicatory inscription dated to the second year of Jingyun (AD 711), illustrated by Li JIngjie in Shifo Xuancui (Essence of Buddhistic Statues), Beijing, 1995, p. 73, no. 53. The inscription states that the stele was donated by Lu Zhaoshun.

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