MING DYNASTY, 16TH CENTURY

The expressive features, patina and soft stylised lines of the carving suggest an early date for this figure. Compare three figural carvings attributed to the 16th century included in the University of Hong Kong Museum and Art Gallery Exhibition, Ming and Qing Bamboo, Hong Kong, 2000, and illustrated by S. Kwan in the catalogue, nos. 5, 6 and 7 where the author mentions that figural carving of immortals were popular in the late Ming and are characterised by their rounded features and prominent cheekbones carved in a 'simple yet detailed manner'.