CHINA, 17TH-18TH CENTURY

Details

A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF A LAMA
CHINA, 17TH-18TH CENTURY
Seated on a double cushion incised with large foliate medallions and a diaper pattern, the right hand raised in vitarkamudra and the left held in the lap, dressed in heavy robes with foliate-patterned hems, with a lotus blossom at each shoulder, one supporting a book, the face with jovial expression below close-cropped hair
6 3/8 in. (16.2 cm.) high, softwood stand

Provenance

Mrs. Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, New York, acquired in China, 1921.
Estate of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, 1948.

Special notice

On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial interest in the outcome of the sale of certain lots consigned for sale. This will usually be where it has guaranteed to the Seller that whatever the outcome of the auction, the Seller will receive a minimum sale price for the work. This is known as a minimum price guarantee. This is a lot where Christie’s holds a direct financial guarantee interest.

Brought to you by

General Enquiries

rockefeller@christies.com +1 212 636 2000

Lot Essay

During the reign of the Qianlong Emperor, who was himself a fervent Buddhist devotee, the production of Buddhist images, paintings, and ritual items, drastically increased to fill the large numbers of temples and religious halls built during this period. In some temples, such as the Fanhua Lou at the Forbidden City, the entirety of the Buddhist pantheon, numbering in the several hundreds of deities and important personages, were depicted sculpturally in gilt-bronze, as illustrated by Yu Zhuoyun in Palaces of the Forbidden City, Hong Kong, 1982, pp. 180-181, figs. 200 and 201. Although the present work does not bear an identifying inscription, it is highly likely the figure depicts an important disciple or teacher from the lineage of the Gelugpa sect, which was the dominant strain of Tibetan Buddhism in China at this time.

More from The Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller: Travel and Americana

View All