A BUDDHIST STELE, FINELY CARVED FROM WHITE MARBLE, NORTHERN QI DYNASTYChina, 550-577. One side with three niches, the bottom with two seated Buddhas flanked by standing attendants, the center niche with several smaller seated figures framed by two Buddhas, and the top with three Buddhas backed by mandorlas. The other side with four niches, the bottom with four larger standing figures centered by two seated Buddhas, the two central niches each with a seated Buddha surrounded by standing bodhisattvas, the lower of which depicts the Future Buddha Maitreya, and the top depicting three standing Buddhas with mandorlas, all below a canopy of snakes. The narrower sides each with four seated Buddhas dressed in loose robes.Provenance: French trade, acquired from a French private collection built between ca. 1980 and 2012.Condition: Very good condition,mensurate with age. Extensive wear, signs of weathering and erosion, encrustations, minor losses, nicks, and scratches.Weight: 21.7 kgDimensions: Height 53.4 cm (excl. stand) and 58.5 cm (incl. stand)Mounted to an associated stand. (2)Stone steles were an important medium for recording historical events since before the Qin dynasty. With the arrival of Buddhism, they also became a vehicle for devotees to gain merit,memorate their loved ones and record their acts of devotion.Literatureparison:Compare a closely related limestone stele, also depicting Buddha and Maitreya and with a similar canopy of snakes, dated to the Northern Qi dynasty, in the Asian Civilisations Museum, accession number 1999-00057.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: Sotheby’s New York, 18 March 2014, lot 169Estimate: USD 400,000 or approx.EUR 453,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A gray limestone Buddhist votive stele, Northern Qi / Northern Zhou dynastyExpert remark:pare the related Buddhist subject and the canopy of snakes. Note the much larger size (69.8 cm) and that the stele is carved from limestone.北齊漢白玉佛碑中國，550-577年。一側為三佛龕，底部為二尊坐佛，兩側為侍者，中央佛龕為幾尊較小的坐像，頂部為曼陀羅。 另一面四壁龕，底部四尊大立像，中央兩佛坐像，中央兩壁龕各立一尊坐像，四周立菩薩，下部繪未來佛彌勒，上部繪三尊立像，帶曼陀羅的佛陀。較窄的兩側各供四尊身著寬鬆袈裟的坐佛。