Lot 3606
  • 3606

A MAGNIFICENT AND EXCEPTIONALLY LARGE DEHUA FIGURE OF GUANYINBY HE CHAOZONG, 17TH CENTURY

Estimate
6,000,000 - 8,000,000 HKD
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Description

  • porcelain
exquisitely and skilfully modelled, depicted standing on a rocky base buffeted with waves, the figure wearing a layered robe draped over softly rounded shoulders and opening at the chest to reveal a beaded lotus necklace, the robe gathered at the waist in a loose knot and cascading down in voluminous folds suggesting the weight of the garment with windswept hem billowing behind, the figure grasping the robe in the left hand and with the other gracefully outstretched in vitarkamudra, the face with a benevolent and peaceful expression rendered with the urna of wisdom and flanked by pendulous earlobes, the hair drawn up into an elaborate chignon and secured with a crown and ruyi-headed pin, the reverse impressed with a He Chaozong yin seal mark

Provenance

Collection of Aimée de Heeren (1903-2006), New York.
Priestley & Ferraro, London, September 2010.

Condition

As typical of early dehua figures, there are firing cracks to the foot and interior, which extend to the rocky base. There are minute bruises and frits to the extremities of the rockwork base and other fragile areas of the figure including the left foot and hems of the robe, with minor areas of retouching where the glaze had bruised/flaked. The right hand was damaged over the years and has recently been professionally made up and replaced.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

Watching Sound of the World: A Unique Early Blanc-de-Chine Figure of Guanyin from Dehua
Li Baoping 

The Blanc-de-Chine kilns of Dehua in Quanzhou, Fujian, made Guanyin figures for the Chinese and for a global market from the Ming (1368-1644) through the Qing (1644-1911) dynasties until now, and the current piece ranks among the best of an immense number of Guanyin figures made there. It bears mark of He Chaozong of the late Ming dynasty, the most celebrated master potter of Dehua. It is extremely rare to find any 17th-century figure with He Chaozong mark, and among these the present Guanyin may be the most impressive work in terms of size and sophistication, and is probably unique in the world.

According to Buddhist scriptures such as the Lotus Sutra, anyone who recites the name of Avalokitesvara during times of distress will be heard and rescued. Avalokitesvara thus is the most worshipped Bodhisattva in Buddhism. Known in China as Guanyin, meaning “watching the sounds” (i.e., perceiving cries [of the world]), Avalokitesvara became the Chinese Goddess of Compassion and Mercy, and is the most favoured Bodhisattva in China. Guanyin has been depicted in sculptural form and in paintings for nearly two millennia.

Instantly recognisable, Blanc de Chine is characterised by its highly translucent body of warm ivory colour, which is due to exceptionally low levels of iron oxide in the clays of Dehua. However, the Buddhist figures by He Chaozong are particularly outstanding in that they are generally thickly potted and demonstrate superior creativity, instead of being thin and standardised as commonly seen in the statuary of other Dehua potters. According to the Gazetteer of Quanzhou Prefecture of 1763, He Chaozong excelled in creating Buddhist figures and these were “transmitted and treasured [everywhere] under heaven”. At the Qing court, at least one Guanyin figure by He Chaozong was worshipped, in a hall of the Forbidden City.

The present figure is outstanding even by the standards of He Chaozong. Radiating grace and poise despite turbulent winds, which are captured in the movement of her robes, this Chinese mother goddess expresses much refinement in her elegant hands – one gathering the fabric just slightly, the other showing particulary fine articulation in the wrist and fingers. It depicts Guanyin as constantly braving the gust and waves to come to people’s rescue, being very engaged with the world, while remaining graceful and elegant.

Ivory carvings of the Virgin Mary produced in the Philippines, Goa and other areas under Catholic influence may also have impacted the maternal yet virginal expression as well as the radiant purity of Dehua’s Guanyin figures at that time. Only one Ming dynasty figure of He Chaozong mark, in the Palace Museum, Beijing seems to be of similar gesture, although this is considerably smaller and less sophisticated in garment details. Also closely related to this lot is a Ming dynasty bronze figure from the same museum; illustrated in Classics of the Forbidden City: Guanyin in the Collection of The Palace Museum, Beijing, 2012, pls. 180 and 47 respectively.

Only a few 17th-century Guanyin figures with He Chaozong mark and of comparable size seem to be recorded, each with variation in detail. These can be divided into two major groups: those with hands concealed in sleeves and standing on waves, and those with the right hand resting on the left and standing on clouds. These all lack the gestures and the sophistication manifested in the windswept garment of the current figure, and are all smaller except for one piece.

Guanyin figures on waves with hands concealed include two pieces in the Palace Museum, Beijing, ascribed to the Ming dynasty, first introduced in Wang Jianhua, 'Porcelain Figures of Guanyin in the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing', in Wenwu, 1994, no. 7, respectively cover and col. pl. 2; one in the Museum of Maritime History, Quanzhou, illustrated in Zhongguo taoci quanji: Fujian taoci [Series of Chinese Ceramics in Chinese Collections: Fujian Ceramics], Shanghai, 1983, pl. 105; one from the Koger Collection in the State Museum of Florida (20.98) and previously in the Edward T. Chow collection, in John Ayers, Blanc de Chine: Divine Images in Porcelain, China Institute Gallery, New York, 2002, cat. no. 26, also included in the Exhibition of Blanc de Chine, S. Marchant & Son, London, 1985, no. 1; and an almost identical figure, of the same height as the current lot, sold in these rooms, 20th May 1987, lot 528, and again at Christie’s London, 8th November 2005, lot 86 (fig. 1).

The second group, depicting Guanyin on clouds, includes one in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, in Patrick Donnelly, Blanc de Chine, London, 1969, pl. 145A; one in the Fujian Province Museum, included in the exhibition Dehua Wares, Fung Ping Shan Museum, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1990, cat. no. 113, and illustrated on the cover; one in Fine Collections of Dehua Ceramics Museum, Fuzhou, 2011, pl. 91, and one sold in our London rooms, 14th December 1982, lot 210. Compare also two other figures of smaller size with He Chaozong mark, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, one of Damo (Bodhidharma), 26th December 2014, lot 3120; one of a seated meditating Buddha, 2nd December 2015, lot 2912.

Although He Chaozong is known to have been active during the late Ming dynasty, the exact life dates of this master potter remain debated, as discussed in Xu Benzhang, 'Discussions of a few issues on the porcelain figures by He Chaozong', Dehua Ancient Ceramics Academic Essay Compilation, Dehua, 2002, pp. 287-297; in Zeng Fan, Fujian taoci kaogu gailun [An overview of ceramic archaeology in Fujian], Fuzhou, 2001, pp. 216-217, and 'Additional Comments on the Dehua Kilns', Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society, vol. 60 (1995-1996), pp. 25-27; in Rose Kerr, “Introductory Remarks on Dehua Ware”, John Ayers and Rose Kerr, Blanc de Chine: Porcelain from Dehua, A Catalogue of the Hickley Collection, Singapore, 2002, pp. 10-11. A very brief biography appears first in the Gazetteer of Quanzhou Prefecture of 1763, rather than in the earlier version of 1612, as some scholars believe, as pointed out in John Ayers, 'The Blanc de Chine figure', Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society, vol. 68, 2003-4, p. 18.

Two seated Guanyin figures with He Chaozong mark provide useful clues. One is inscribed with the cyclical date yiwei nian, corresponding to AD 1619 (or 1559 etc), see John Ayers, op. cit., 2002, cat. no. 25, which is very similar to a smaller Guanyin sold at Bonhams London, 17th May 2012, lot 297. The other is a Guanyin enthroned before a mandorla indistinctly inscribed in blackish underglaze blue with a date equivalent to AD 1618, first published as an item of the Stephen D. Winkworth collection in R.L. Hobson, The Wares of the Ming Dynasty, London, 1923, pl. 45, fig. 1, the inscription made legible through X-ray and published in Robert Blumenfield, Blanc de Chine: The Great Porcelain of Dehua, Berkeley, 2002, pp. 164-165. For a chronology of Dehua Guanyin figures of the Ming and Qing dynasties, see Liu Youzheng, Zhongguo Dehua baici yanjiu/Blanc de Chine, Beijing, 2007, pp. 163-176. For a comprehensive study of the Guanyin worship, see Yu Chunfang, Kuan-yin: The Chinese Transformation of Avalokitesvara, New York, 2001.

In addition to its grace, uniqueness and academic significance, this Guanyin figure has a prominent provenance. It was formerly in the collection of Aimée de Heeren (1903–2006), a socialite celebrity from Brazil and a long time fixture on the international social scene and a regular on the best-dressed lists. Mrs. de Heeren was the widow of Rodman de Heeren, an heir to the Wanamaker department store fortune. According to a writing of New York Times about her house on East 90th Street, 2nd December 2007, titled End of an Era for Family Mansion, “When she died last year at 103, Aimée de Heeren — of New York; Palm Beach, Fla.; Paris; and Biarritz, France — became one more lost link to an earlier age of social grace and high society”. According to New York Social Diary (6th February, 2007), “She had many friends from all walks of life including aristocrats, intellectuals and artists [such as the Kennedy family]. She spoke six languages albeit not all perfectly but well enough, as her daughter put it “to move around society in a spectacular manner.” Known for her elegance, originality and taste, Mrs. de Heeren was well fortified with great beauty and charm, not to mention an exquisite kindness in the way she treated others.”

According to the phone book of Biarritz, Mrs. de Heeren used to swim in the Atlantic every day she was in town until the age of 102 years. Confucius (551-479 BCE) says “The benevolent ones will live long”. In addition to exercise, compassion, as embodied in this sea-crossing Guanyin figure that accompanied her, probably played an equally important role in her amazing longevity.