Page 149 - 2019 September 11th Christie's New York Chiense Art Himalayan bronzes and art

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A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF AN ARHAT
CHINA, QING DYNASTY, LATE 18TH
CENTURY
6√ in. (17.5 cm.) high

$25,000-35,000

PROVENANCE
Collection of Cheng Huan, SC, Hong Kong, 1990s,
by repute.
During the reign of the Qianlong Emperor,
who was himself a fervent Buddhist devotee,
the production of Buddhist images, paintings,
and ritual items, drastically increased to fll the
large numbers of temples and religious halls
built during this period. In some temples, such
as the Fanhua Lou at the Forbidden City, the
entirety of the Buddhist pantheon, numbering
in the several hundreds of deities and important
personages, were depicted sculpturally in gilt-
bronze, as illustrated by Yu Zhuoyun in Palaces of
the Forbidden City, Hong Kong, 1982, pp. 180-181,
fgs. 200 and 201. Although the present work
lacks an identifying inscription, it is possible it
represents the arhat, Pantaka, who is nearly always
shown holding a book. Within the eighteenth-
century Qing pantheon of Buddhist gilt-bronzes,
arhats and other learned fgures are usually shown
on a base of stacked cushions, as is the case
with the present fgure. Particular attention has
been paid to the various textiles that make up the
cushion, which are fnely incised with diferent
patterns and motifs.

Himalayan Art Resources, item no. 24541.

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