Lot 188
188
A RARE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF PADMAPANI
VAT rate of 5% is payable on hammer price and at 2… Read more
A RARE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF PADMAPANI

NORTHERN WEI DYNASTY (386-535)

Details
A RARE GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF PADMAPANI
NORTHERN WEI DYNASTY (386-535)
Cast in high-relief against a mandorla chased at the edges with flames, the figure holding a lotus stem to his left shoulder, the right hand holding a scarf, the hair piled into a high chignon above the rounded face, wearing a dhoti and standing bare footed on a lotus base, raised on a platform with four splayed legs and bearing inscriptions to the right-hand side and the reverse
9 in. (23 cm.) high, fitted Japanese wooden box
Provenance
By repute, purchased from Kusaka Shogado in Kyoto, Japan, in the 1930s.
Special notice
VAT rate of 5% is payable on hammer price and at 20% on the buyer's premium.

Brought to you by

Louise Britain
Louise Britain

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

+44 (0)20 7389 2574

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

Sign in
View condition report

Lot Essay

The inscription to the raised platform is almost completely illegible, with only a few characters being identifiable, amongst them 'Li Dao Sheng' which appears to be a personal name.
The lotus-bearing manifestations of Avalokitesvara, also known as Padmapani (and in Chinese it is known as Guanshiyin Pusa), was a popular image in early Chinese Buddhism. The lotus is symbolic of purity, and as such, it is a common attribute of the deity.
Compare a similar figure sold in our Hong Kong Rooms, 29 October 2001, lot 503, which was dated by inscription to A.D. 504 and bore the same treatment of the folds in the garment and relatively naive depiction of the facial features.

More from Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art

View All
View All