Page 257 - Sotheby's Chinese Art and Porcelain Auction New York September 12, 2018
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A ‘DEHUA’ FIGURE OF GUANYIN
17TH / 18TH CENTURY
standing barefoot on a bank of swirling clouds,
the face modeled with a serene expression with
downcast eyes, pendulous earlobes and an
urna mark on the forehead, the hair gathered
in a high chignon secured by a ruyi-head tiara,
robes draped over the rounded shoulders, open
at the chest to reveal a beaded lotus necklace,
the hands folded under the cascading billowing
robes, the back impressed with a double gourd-
shaped seal mark that reads He Chaozong
Height 16⅜ in., 41.5 cm
Standing with robes undulating gracefully in
the wind, this Þ gure of Guanyin is notable for its
size, Þ ne modeling and delicate posture. From
the Ming and Qing dynasties to the present,
the Dehua kilns in Fujian have made Guanyin
Þ gures such as the present piece for both the
Chinese and global market, with most domestic
images produced for devotion in both public
and private shrines.
A closely related Þ gure from the Kempe
Collection was included in the exhibition
The Arts of the Ch’ing Dynasty, The Oriental
Ceramic Society, London, 1964, cat. no. 294.
A Þ gure of this type also with a He Chaozong
mark, from the collection of Edward T. Chow,
sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 19th May 1981,
lot 465. Another similar Þ gure, albeit smaller,
was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 24th
November 1981, lot 377, again, 14th November
1989, lot 136, and for the third time, 2nd
November 1998, lot 361. Related Þ gures that
sold in these rooms include a larger example,
11th July 1972, lot 146, and one of Guanyin
with a diadem centering the Amida Buddha,
20th-21st November 1973, lot 460. See also an
example that sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 29th
May 2013, lot 2304.
$ 40,000-60,000
⋩ᶫġİġ⋩ℓᶾ䲨ġġġ⽟⊾䘥慱奨枛䩳⁷
˪ỽ㛅⬿˫㫦
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