A rare inscribed silver-alloy figure of Sakyamuni Buddha, 10th-13th century

Seated in dhyanasana upon a raised lotus pedestal with a flaming mandala behind, with right hand raised in vitarka mudra, the serene face framed by tight curls around a high usnisha and long pendent earlobes, the reverse inscribed with a twenty-character inscription, stand, box. 13.2cm (5¼in) high (3). Estimate: £25,000 - 35,000 - Unsold

Provenance: a Canadian private collection, Toronto
Yan Collection, New York, 1990s
J. Abraham Cohen Collection, New York, 1999

Note: The inscription refers to a saying from a sutra. The saying may be loosely translated as reading:

Every path is rooted in karma and owes its existence to where it came from.
So one can proclaim that every path is based on karma.

Bonhams. Fine Chinese Art, 14 May 2009. New Bond Street www.bonhams.com