| JADE AND HARDSTONE |
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| 99 A fine soapstone figure of a Buddhist disciple 17th/18th centuries Height: 9 3/4 in, 24.8 cm the young man stands with his hands held before him in anjalimudra and his head tilted slightly to the left. His bald head is well carved, with incised brows, and his features bear a serene, contented expression. He wears long, layered robes: the shorter incised with scrolling flowers, a butterfly, clouds, rocks and waves, and with cloud and wave borders; and the longer under-robe with scattered blossoms. His shoes protrude from the hem. The cream-coloured soapstone bears extensive remains of pigments and gilding. This rare figure is seldom seen in soapstone and is reminiscent of Ananda. It bears a strong resemblance to Tang dynasty sculptures: see, for example, Sirén, Chinese Sculpture: From the Fifth to the Fourteenth Century, pl. 374A, in marble; and Grenville L. Winthrop: Retrospective for a Collector, no. 67, pp. 80–1, in gilt-bronze. A similar soapstone figure, dated about 1650, is illustrated in Schätze Chinas aus Museen der DDR, no. 108. |