Important Chinese Art
Important Chinese Art
PROPERTY FROM A JAPANESE PRIVATE COLLECTION
A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF AVALOKITESHVARA, SUI DYNASTY
Auction Closed
September 23, 08:35 PM GMT
Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF AVALOKITESHVARA
SUI DYNASTY
隋 銅鎏金觀音立像
standing upright with a slight curve to the hips, the neat coiffure kept with a pointed diadem centered by a diminutive figure of Amitabha and issuing long sashes on either side, the body adorned with a long necklace and draped garments, a cintamani jewel resting in the proper left hand, with crisply cast bare feet set on a lotus pedestal further raised on a hexagonal base, a pierced circular mandorla affixed to the back of the head, modern stand, Japanese wood box (5)
Height 4½ in., 11.5 cm
The unifying but brief Sui dynasty (581-618) set the stage for an artistic and cultural renaissance that reached its zenith in the succeeding Tang dynasty (618-907). Characteristics of Sui period bronze figures of bodhisattvas include subtly swaying, elongated columnar bodies that are adorned in elaborate robes and jewelry. The artisan of the present figure employed the subtle contrapostto positioning of the body, elegant body proportions, a separate mandorla, and a lotus base, elements that developed further during the Tang dynasty.