Lot 303. A blue and white figure of a daoist deity, Ming dynasty, Wanli period (1573-1619). Height 10 1/8 in., 25.7 cm. Estimate 15,000 — 20,000 USD. Lot sold 20,000 USD. Photo Sotheby's

the bearded figure portrayed seated on a throne supported on a plinth painted with a mountain emerging from crashing waves and surrounded by flames, dressed in the robes of an official with hands held at chest level and hidden beneath a diaper-patterned cloth, the back of the figure with a small circular aperture. 

Provenance: Christie's New York, 20th September 2001, lot 147.

Note: Figures of deities gained popularity from the middle of the Ming dynasty, and images such as the present lot were probably made for domestic shrines. A similar image was sold at Christie's London, 15th June 1999, lot 62.