Note: It is rare to find gilt-lacquered wood Buddha figures of this magnificent size with its original lotus petal base. The technique of coating carved wooden figures with lacquer and gilt appears to have emerged in the early Ming dynasty, which served as the inspiration for those made in the Qing dynasty.

A smaller example attributed to the same period, but seated in dharmacakra, in the British Museum, London, was included in the exhibition Buddhism. Art and Faith, British Museum, London, 1985, cat. no. 309; and an earlier dry lacquer example of these dimensions, but seated in dhyanasana, was sold in our New York rooms, 1st June 1994, lot 463. Compare also similarly carved figures of Buddha but lacking a base, such as a much smaller example dated to 1411, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, illustrated in Alan Priest, Chinese Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1944, pl. 75; and a slightly larger pair of gilded red lacquer figures sold in our London rooms, 8th November 2006, lot 33

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, 08 Oct 10 11:00 AM, Hong Kong