Page 57 - Sotheby's Imperial Chiense Porcelain Nov 4 2020 London

215
TANG SANCAI - THE SZE YUAN TANG COLLECTION 唐 藍釉羅漢坐像
A RARE BLUE AND AMBER-GLAZED SEATED
FIGURE OF A LUOHAN 來源
TANG DYNASTY 思源堂收藏
seated in dhyanasana with his legs folded and his hands in
meditation position, wearing a loosely fitting diaphanous robe
opening at the chest, the robe highlighted in a rich deep blue
glaze with amber colour streaks, the unglazed face with a
serene expression, moulded with long eyebrows, a pronounced
cranium, and a pair of pendulous ears
Height 19 cm, 7½ in.
The dating of this lot is consistent with the result of a
thermoluminescence test, Research Laboratory For
Archaeology And The History of Art, Oxford University, no.
466w44.
£ 20,000-30,000

Despite the spread of Buddhism, its teachings and images
in the Tang dynasty, ceramic figures of luohan (arhats)
are extremely rare, and this piece appears to be unique.
Stylistically, it follows the vivid realism High Tang sculptures,
when Buddhist deities were rendered with highly expressive
and distinctive features. Sculptures of luohan, such as the
present, were modelled with stern meditative expressions
and with highly individual features, to convey the concept
that spiritual enlightenment was within the reach of all
practitioners.
Luohan are close disciples of the Historical Buddha
Shakyamuni. While they attained enlightenment during the
course of their lives, they delayed entering Nirvana and
remained on earth to protect the Buddhist dharma and aid
practitioners in seeking enlightenment. Luohan are believed
to possess perfect wisdom and insight of all existence while
being freed from the bonds of desire. By the Tang dynasty,
the teachings of luohan were made available thanks to the
translation of the Fahua jin (Annotated Record of Buddhism)
by the pilgrim Xuanzang (596-664).
While no other closely related figure appears to have been
published, this piece can be compared to the group of life-
size sancai luohan recovered at Buddhist caves in Yixian,
Hebei province. A seated luohan from this group in the
British Museum, London, is published in Jessica Rawson, The
British Museum Book of Chinese Art, London, 1992, pl. 113;
and another in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is
illustrated in Angela Falco Howard, et.al., Chinese Sculpture,
New Haven, 2006, pl. 3.110.

110 Buyers are liable to pay both the hammer price (as estimated above) and the buyer’s premium together with any applicable taxes and Artist’s Resale Right 111
(which will depend on the individual circumstances). Refer to the Buying at Auction and VAT sections at the back of this catalogue for further information.