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ƒ CHINA, Ming dynasty, 15th century
Important gilded bronze …
See original version (French)
12
-
ƒ CHINA, Ming dynasty, 15th century
Important gilded bronze …
See original version (French)
Estimate €40,000 - €60,000
Voluntary lot
Description
ƒ CHINA, Ming dynasty, 15th century
Important gilded bronze sculpture
Representing the divinity Bixia Yuanjun, also known as the "Sovereign of the Clouds of Dawn", depicted seated in a majestic posture, her hands clasped in front of her body holding a hu tablet. The face, with its benevolent expression, is framed by a high headdress decorated with phoenixes and held in place by a pin, embellished with cords that fall on either side of the face and cross over a lock-shaped pendant. The divinity is dressed in ample robes that fall to ruyi-tipped shoes, held in place by a court belt and a long scarf tied between the legs. The edges of the garments are finely engraved with floral scrolls. Resting on an adapted wooden base.
Height: 72 cm
Width : 56 cm
Depth: 30 cm
Provenance: Private collection, France. An old black and white photograph of the sculpture is preserved.
Comparative: For a comparable 15th-century bronze figure by Bixia Yuanjun, see the example in the Art Institute of Chicago, illustrated by S. Little and K. Schipper in Taoism and the Arts of China, California, 2000, p. 278, no. 1. Schipper in Taoism and the Arts of China, California, 2000, p. 278, no. 95. See also a smaller Ming dynasty ormolu figure in the British Museum under inventory no. 1908,0420.6.
The imposing presence of this figure and the iconography of the three phoenixes on the deity's head point to Bixia Yuanjun, an important Taoist goddess associated with Mount Tai, the most easterly of China's Five Sacred Mountains, located in Shandong province. During the Ming dynasty, the temple of Bixia Gong was built on the summit of the mountain as a sanctuary dedicated to her cult. Considered a manifestation of yin energy, Bixia Yuanjun became extremely popular in Taoism from the Ming period onwards. Gilded bronze sculptures of this size are still particularly rare.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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