Lot 3606. Property of the MQ Collection. An extremely rare inscribed limestone 'Buddhist Triad' stele, Tang dynasty, dated to the first year of the Wansui Dengfeng period of Empress Wu Zetian (in accordance with 696); 28 cm. Lot Sold 482,600 HKD (Estimate 250,000 - 600,000 HKD) © Sotheby's 2025

Provenance : A Japanese collection, since the 1920s.

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 2nd April 2019, lot 3113.

Literature: Matsubara Saburō, Zōtei chūgoku bukkyō chōkokushi kenkyū: toku ni kondōbutsu oyobi sekkutsu zōzō igai no sekibutsu ni tsuite no ronkō/Chinese Buddhist sculpture: a study based on bronze and stone statutes other than works from cave temples, Tokyo, 1966, p. 286, fig. 260.

Note: Carved with an arched niche enclosing Buddha seated atop an elevated pedestal and flanked by two disciples and depicted with two pairs of kneeling figures flanking the tall stem of the pedestal, the stele further bears a votive inscription made by a donor with the last name Shangguan for the blessing of Empress Wu Zetian and the benefit of all sentient beings in the first year of Dazhou (the Great Zhou dynasty) Wansui Dengfeng era (696).

The Great Zhou dynasty was established by Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history (r. 690 to 705). The ‘Wansui Dengfeng’ era was her seventh regnal title, with its first year corresponding to 696. Remnant traces of other characters on the stele seem to refer to Jinlun Shengshen Huangdi, one of the honorific titles Wu Zetian had adopted for herself, suggesting that the creation of this stele was deeply tied to the Wu Zhou dynasty.

The Shangguan family was a prominent clan during the Tang dynasty. Shangguan Yi (608–665) held a high-ranking position in the early Tang dynasty, while during the Wu Zhou dynasty, Shangguan Wan'er (664–710) was also highly favoured. The donor of this stele carries the Shangguan last name and may have been a member of this influential family who was grateful for imperial favour.

The Wu Zhou regime lasted less than fifteen years, and surviving sculptures bearing dated inscriptions are exceedingly rare – the ‘Wansui Dengfeng’ period, in particular, lasted for only three months. Compare a Wu Zhou dynasty limestone triad shrine dated to the third year of Chang'an (703) in the collection of the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., no. F1909.79. Compare also a slightly later example dated to the seventh year of Kaiyuan (719) of the Emperor Xuanzong's reign, but with a similar niche, exhibited in Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Pottery and Stone Carvings, Yamanaka & Co., Osaka, 1928, cat. no. 265, and later sold in these rooms, 29th October 2024, lot 2009.