Page 134 - September 11 2018 Junkunc Collection Sculpture

While further aspects of Northern Zhou carving, such as the columnar body surmounted by a square
head with broad nose and lips, remain, the characteristic stockiness has been replaced by a refined
lengthening of the silhouette which is typical of Sui dynasty figures. This is evident in the slender waist,
emphasized by the sash that is draped over the shoulders and meets at the front and back with a clasp,
and the tassel hanging from the center of the necklace. It is interesting to note, however, that the hand
retains the archaistic heaviness of earlier carvings.

The figure holds a ‘pure water bottle’ in the left and, the missing right hand would probably have held a
willow branch – attributes that identify the subject as Guanyin. Compare a smaller limestone carving,
inscribed and dated to the third year of Baoding (corresponding to 563), also holding a vase in its left
hand, published in Matsubara Saburō, ibid., pl. 350a and b, together with an undated figure, pl. 350c. The
style of carving of this figure is comparable with much larger bodhisattva figures elaborately fashioned
from limestone, also attributed to the late Northern Zhou to early Sui dynasty; for example see one
from the Arthur M. Sackler Collection, now in the collection of Columbia University, New York, coll. no.
S3342; another in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, published in Denise Patry Leidy and Donna
Strahan, Wisdom Embodied. Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
New York, 2010, p. 173, pl. A16; and a third, in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, published in
Hai-wai yi-chen / Chinese Art in Overseas Collections. Buddhist Sculpture, Taipei, 1986, pl. 60.

Examples of related Sui dynasty marble carvings include a figure, excavated in 1979 from Hongxing
cun, Wuzhangyuan town, Qishan, Shaanxi Province, and now preserved in the Qishan Museum, Qishan,
illustrated in Wang Wenyao & Fu Meilin, ‘Suidai hanbaiyu zaoxiang/White Jade Statue of Sui Dynasty’,
Shoucang [Collections], 2010, vol. 12, p. 67, pl. 4; and another, in the Shaanxi Museum, published in
Matsubara Saburō, op. cit., pl. 534b.

ₑᄷ䰃ႅࡄক䖧䴨喑ᒏ䏭びᡧ喑䲏ღ᫦ₐ喑周ᄙ਴ ڣι喑㫼๔䘪ᰰ㬊㶀ࢇ➖乕喑㈽㈱喑䐶 Denise Patry
䫷喑♣䏘䛼ᷱీⷖȠः䴻䪤喑Ͱ㺸䮸А䷕ᅇȡፁፈⰑ Leidy ࣷ Donna Strahan喑ȨWisdom Embodied
㗖喑ݺᒹϑ㉽喑ថ᫩㚦㗹喑䵥丫ₐ͚ओᜥ⤍⾄喑ಯ㜠 Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in the
Metropolitan Museum of Artȩ喑㈽㈱喑2010
㏃㚝ȡ᝸䘕ᒏᙸឬ㜗ᬖ᱌䕍׼喑ऑὥࣇᄓ喑ݒᰶᘼ
䋐ȡ Ꭱ喑䴮173喑ృ❵A16喠ڣ̶喑䇜ᬻᅩϋ∏ݖ᫜㒻
㶀乕喑ᬻᅩϋ∏ݖ᫜喑ܷȨ⊤ใ䖧⣺ί҈׼ȩ喑
ₑᄷ⿸׼喑ጓ᝸ᠮ⌕⨣喑ठ᝸㑧๞喑ᝃᰫᠮṷᴠ
झࡄ喑1986Ꭱ喑ృ❵60ȡ
᳊喑⮳Ͱ㻭䴠㤖㫖᝭➦ᰶȡ℁̭ⴠ▝ⴠҸ喑⼺ᄼ喑
ӊ䟅᪴ⴒ喑䕍᫩ԊჇ̶Ꭱ喍ڙٰ563Ꭱ喎喑ጓ᝸ Ⱕ䶋䮸А๔⤳ⴠ䰂ज℁̭Ҹ喑1979Ꭱܧౌ᫩䮊㺬Ⱞᆽ
ϓᠮ⌕⨣喑䠱Ძ̶࣌䗻喑ܧ㮂ह̷喑ృ❵350aࣷ ᆞ㍐ρ̵࣌䣛㈲ᭌ᱾喑⤫ႅᆽᆞ㍐ࢇ➖乕喑ృ㺸⢸᪴
㔭ࣷЅᶲ᳄喑Ȧ䮸А⑏⮪⢶䕍׼ȧ喑Ȩᩣ㫼ȩ喑2010
b喑ह䠱̭׼喑᫤А̺㾠喑ృ❵350cȡᰶ̶ᄷⴠ
▝ⴠ㤖㫖׼喑䏘ᒏ偮ն喑䰂ጒ㇫㉝喑ϓנ◧ࡄক᱘ Ꭱ喑ࢤ12喑䴮67喑ృ❵4喠̭ࣷҸ喑㫼䮊㺬᯳टࢇ➖
㜠䮸݊᝭䕍喑䷕ᵩ౴㜴ₑᄷज℁喠ڣ̭喑䈪ٸ߿ 乕喑䠱Ძ̶࣌䗻喑ݺ䔝ܧ㮂喑ృ❵534bȡ

䯲㧱喑⤫ႅ਒՘℁ϋ๔Ⴅ喑㈽㈱喑㌕㮌S3342喠

132 JUNKUNC: CHINESE BUDDHIST SCULPTURE