AMENDMENTS ( Please see below in notes) A Chinese bronze 'Guanyin' censer, Ming dynasty, modelled as Guanyin seated in front of three mountain peaks, pierced to the reverse to release incense, with a Buddhist lion approaching Guanyin, 18cm high

Please refer to department for condition reportNotes: Guanyin 观音, from the Indian Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, is one of the most popular and most favoured Buddhist deities in China, and is therefore frequently depicted in sculptural form. Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who have delayed entering paradise in order to assist others in attaining enlightenment. Originally a male figure, the image of Guanyin underwent much evolution in China, and the idols of Guanyin in Chinese Buddhist temples were moulded after the Yuan Dynasty, almost all of them with female appearances. Guanyin is also known as Guanshiyin, with ‘guan’ meaning "contemplate", shi meaning "world" and yin meaning "sounds", with a combined meaning of "[The One Who] Perceives the Sounds of the World".