A superbly carved rhinoceros horn figure of Wenshu (Manjushri) 17th Century

exquisitely carved, the figure sits gracefully upon the back of a recumbent lion atop a swirling cloud base, his left hand raised in vitarkamudra with thumb and forefinger held together, with his right hand resting on his right knee, wearing loosely fitting robes with a border of scrolling lotus, the almost feminine features of the face serene and benevolent, the hair partly swept up in a curled topknot behind a lotus diadem, the remainder falling behind the shoulders, the lion with a mane of thick coils and an open mouth revealing its sharp fangs, inset lacquered wood base

Collection of Ruth Dreyfus.
Collection of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler.
Christie's New York, 1st December 1994, lot 40.

Jan Chapman, 'Carvings in Rhinoceros Horn and Their Buffalo Horn Imitations', Orientations, January, 1988, p. 44, fig. 3.
Jan Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, pl. 101.

Manjushri is the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, known as Wenshu in Chinese.  Wenshu is sometimes depicted riding a gold-maned lion, which symbolizes his fearless majesty and power over the Great Wisdom teachings of the Buddha. 

See a rhinoceros horn figure of a seated Guanyin illustrated in Jan Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, pl. 100. Chapman notes that 'figures carved from rhinoceros horn are rare and seem to have been the work of the best craftmen. They were imitated in the cheaper and more easily available buffalo horn which indicates that rhinoceros horn carvings were treasured as especially rare and valuable pieces by their educated owners' (ibid., p. 109-110).