A very rare gilt-bronze figure of Guanyin


Yuan/Ming DynastyThe bodhisattva seated regally in lalitasana, with the left hand resting on top of the left knee, the right arm holding a jewel and supported by a curved three-legged armrest continuing around the back, the goddess adorned with elaborate beaded jewellery and a foliate crown centered by the figure of Amitabha Buddha above the contemplative face with downcast eyes, wearing a sanghati and antaravasaka tied above the waist falling in graceful folds around the legs further embellished with beaded jewellery. 35cm (13 3/8in) high.
|元/明 銅鎏金自在觀音坐像Provenance:Andrew F. Chandler, Hancock Park, California來源：Andrew F. Chandler舊藏，漢考克公園，加州Andrew F. Chandler (d.2015) was the second son of the Ralph J. Chandler, a shipping executive who also was a nephew of Harry Chandler, second publisher of the Los Angeles Times, and Lenore Gantt Chandler. The Chandler family were known Los Angeles philanthropists and contributors to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Music Centre. 安德魯·錢德勒（2015年歿）是洛杉磯名門之後，其父拉夫·錢德勒（1966年歿）曾擔任一家運輸公司總裁，其叔父是《洛杉磯時報》前總裁，母親雷諾·錢德勒為洛杉磯慈善家。錢德勒家族對洛杉磯博物館及公益事業貢獻巨大，他們亦是洛杉磯郡立博物館及音樂中心創始人之一。Meticulously cast with extraordinary attention to detail, the present figure would have been commissioned for worship in an important temple or an altar belonging to an elite member of society. Radiating compassion with his slightly downward gaze and gentle smile, the deity, known as Avalokiteshvara, the 'Bodhisattva of Compassion' and 'protector of the world', is the subject of the 24th chapter of the 'Lotus Sutra', in which he attempts to save all sentient beings from the suffering of the world. Modelled in the posture of 'Royal Ease' with one leg drawn up and the other folded in front, the deity was often referred to as Shuiyue Guanyin, or Avalokiteshvara of the Water and Moon. This specific iconography was introduced in China with the translation of the 'Avatamsaka Sutra' (Flower Garland Sutra) during the fifth century. The wish-fulfilling pearl, which the deity holds in the right hand, represents the luminous, pure and flawless state of mind, which was donated to the bodhisattva by Longnu, the granddaughter of the Dragon King. See I.Wilt, Personal Salvation and Filial Piety: Two Precious Scroll Narratives of Guanyin and Her Acolytes, Honolulu, 2008, p.34.The stylistic conventions noted on the present figure would appear to represent a further development from the simpler and rather classic tradition of Buddhist portraiture dating to the Song and Yuan dynasties. Late Yuan and early Ming dynasty figures may be characterised by more full-fleshed and ornate deities. At this time, Himalayan sculptural styles appeared in China as a consequence of the political and religious ties that existed between the Chinese Imperial Court and the dominant Tibetan religious orders. The position of the right leg, laying flat on the base, is also a variant rajalilasana posture introduced in portraiture dating from the Ming dynasty, echoing the classical Indian posture of this form of Avalokiteshvara.The three-legged armrest, on which the present deity rests the right arm, was also a feature often encountered in portraiture of Avalokiteshvara dating from the late 14th century. See for example a gilt-bronze figure of Avalokiteshvara, Yuan dynasty, illustrated by M.M.Grewenig and E.Rist, eds., Buddha: 2000 Years of Buddhist Art, Völklingen, 2016, no.62; and another gilt-lacquered bronze Avalokiteshvara, Yuan dynasty, in the Kaifeng Museum (acc.no.KF100201). See also a Dehua figure of an Immortal, Ming dynasty, modelled with a similar three-legged armrest as the present lot, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Inscriptions and Sulptures, Shanghai, 2008, pp.207-208, no.196.A related gilt-bronze figure of Avalokiteshvara, early Ming dynasty, seated in a similar posture and adorned with an elaborate headdress and jewellery, as the present example, is included in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio, illustrated by P.Pal, On the Path to Void: Buddhist Art of the Tibetan Realm, Mumbai, 1996, p.156, pl.11. Another related but larger gilt-bronze figure of Avalokiteshvara, dated to 1435, was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 April 2011, lot 2839.觀音自在坐姿，帶高花葉寶冠，冠中間有一佛，繒帶與髪辮沿耳後披於兩肩，雙耳皆佩花葉嵌寶石耳飾，上身著雙領下垂式天衣，內著袈裟束於腹前，胸前佩瓔珞連珠式項鍊，袈裟及下裙上亦垂掛連珠式瓔珞，其右手持一明珠，左手置於膝之上，靠如意式憑几而坐，佛光寶氣，造型別緻。此尊觀音自在坐像，可辨認其身份為自在觀音或水月觀音。以其金水及鑄造來看，或曾為重要寺院特別定製。「水月」原意為水中之月，佛經中引意佛法皆無實體，五世紀初隨《華嚴經·入法界品》傳入中原。其手持明珠，傳為龍女所贈，象徵光明、純潔以及毫無雜念。有關觀音像討論，見I.Wilt，《Personal Salvation and Filial Piety: Two Precious Scroll Narratives of Guanyin and Her Acolytes》，檀香山，2008年，頁24。自在坐姿之觀音造傳入中原後多見於宋元時期的雕塑，而元末明初青銅造像亦有所見。自在坐姿最早在印度佛造像上就有出現，後對漢藏佛造像影響深遠。此尊觀音以中原造像為主，但在造型及風格上又受印度及尼泊爾、西藏造像影響，實不可多得。此尊觀音所倚靠之三足憑几，亦多見於宋元佛造像，如一尊元代中原銅鎏金菩薩像，鑄有類似的瑞獸頭如意形憑几，見M.M.Grewenig及E.Rist編，《Buddha: 2000 Years of Buddhist Art. 232 Masterpieces》，弗爾克林根，2016年，編號62。河南開封博物館亦藏一件元代銅漆金水月觀音坐像（博物館編號KF100201），其面相、瓔珞及如意式憑几之構造可資參考。在明代德化瓷造像上，亦可見類似的如意三足憑几，見一例清宮舊藏明代德化白瓷老翁，著錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系：銘刻與雕塑》，上海，2008年，頁207-208，編號196。見克利夫蘭藝術博物館藏一件明早期銅鎏金自在觀音，身形較此尊稍纖細，但其坐姿及身帶瓔珞可資比較，見P.Pal，《On the Path to Void: Buddhist Art of the Tibetan Realm》，孟買，1996年，頁156，圖11。另見香港蘇富比曾售出明宣德一例，尺寸較大，其面相及坐姿可資參考，2011年4月8日，拍品2839。