Lot 54. A fine very pale green jade figure of Guanyin and attendant, 19th century; 19cm (7 1/2in) high. Estimate HK$ 150,000-200,000. Sold for HK$ 937,500 (€ 111,469). Photo: Bonhams.

Carved standing in long flowing robes beside a young boy, probably depicting Shancai, with hands clasped together wearing a celestial ribbon, with one hand holding a rosary and the other tucked in her robes, her slender face carved with a peaceful smiling expression, the stone of a very pale green tone, wood stand.

Provenance: An English private collection, acquired before 1980, and thence by descent.

Note: Legend has it that Shancai was a disabled boy from India who wanted to study the dharma. Upon hearing that there was a Buddhist teacher on the rocky island of Putuo he journeyed there and found Guanyin despite his disability. Guanyin decided to test the boy's resolve to fully study the Buddhist teachings, conjuring the illusion of three sword-wielding pirates running up the hill to attack her. Shancai, seeing that his teacher was in danger, hobbled uphill and when seeing Guanyin jumping over the edge of the cliff, followed her. Shancai fell down the cliff but was halted in mid-air by Guanyin, who now asked him to walk. Shancai found that he could walk normally and that he was no longer crippled. When he looked into a pool of water he also discovered that he now had a very handsome face. From that day forth, Guanyin taught Shancai the dharma.

Compare a related white jade figure of Guanyin on rockwork, Qing dynasty, from the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Noble Virtuosity: Imperial Jades of the Qing Dynasty from the Palace Museum, Macau, 2012, pl.12. A related smaller white jade figure of Guanyin, Qianlong, carved seated on rockwork, sold at Sotheby's Paris, 9 June 2011, lot 19; see also a related pale celadon jade figure of Guanyin standing on a dragonfish, 19th century, sold at Sotheby's New York, 16-17 September 2014, lot 269.

Bonhams. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Hong Kong, 4 June 2015