A large and well painted pottery figure of a court lady Tang dynasty

the elegant standing figure dressed in a voluminous robe featuring vertical columns of black circles echoing the pleats, with orange-red foliate scrolls on the borders against the white slip, the wide sleeves with traces of orange-red pigment, her right hand clasped to her chest, the left hand bent at the elbow with two fingers extended, the full face well-modeled with delicate lips picked out in red and heavily lidded eyes below wispy brows, her hair framing her face and drawn up into a dramatic topknot

Sotheby's New York, 7th December 1983, lot 135 (cover lot).
Thereafter with the present owners.

Selections of Chinese Art from Private Collections, China House Gallery, China Institute in America, 18th October 1986 - 4th January 1987, colorplate p. 8, pp. 82-83.

The figure is in fair condition, with old cracks to the left arm. The right side of the gown appears to have been filled with poxy to stabilize the condition. The left hand with two fingers missing. Some losses to the slip across the lower section at the back of her robe.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Unglazed large figures of plump Tang court ladies with such crisp, naturalistic modeling are rare, and the present figure is exceptional for its well preserved condition, especially the pigments of the painting of her robe that reflect the fashion and textile design trends at the time. The dress and hairstyle seen on this figure are similar to those of ladies depicted in murals on the walls of tomb no. 187, Astana, Turfan, which is now preserved in the Xinjiang Museum and is illustrated in The Ancient Art in Xinjiang, China, Urumqi, 1994, p. 87, pls. 213 and 215.

For examples of painted pottery court ladies see a smaller figure included in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, Vol. Three (I), London, 2006, p. 205, pl. 1215; and another figure depicted in a similar pose but its gown glazed in blue and amber, excavated at Zhongbaocun near Xi'an in Shaanxi province, included in the exhibition Chine Ciel et Terre, Musees Royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Brussels, 1988, cat. no. 165.      

Compare also a figure illustrated in Ezekiel Schloss, Ancient Chinese Ceramics Sculpture from Han through T'ang, vol. II, col. pl. VII and pl. 214, and discussed in vol. I, pp. 164-5, where Schloss states that this type of figure has been found in tombs dated between AD 704-748, from Shaanxi province, mostly near Xi'an. Another related example, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, is published and discussed in Jan Fontein and Tung Wu, Unearthing China's Past, Boston, 1973, pl. 89, pp. 174-5; and one of similar size was sold in these rooms, 2nd June 1977, lot 389.