A SMALL BRONZE VOTIVE FIGURE OF BUDDHA WITH DHYANI BUDDHAS NORTHERN WEI DYNASTY

cast in relief with Buddha seated in dhyanasana with hands held in dhyanamudra against a flame-shaped mandorla, all resting on a two-legged splayed plinth, the meditative countenance framed by a nimbus of radiating lotus petals on the mandorla, within a large medallion of dhyani Buddhas, crested by a checkered and dotted border and surrounded by a beaded-edged striated band, the reverse finely cast with two seated Buddhas, Sakyamuni and Prabhutaratna, within a niche flanked by adorants and descending apsaras, below a register of eight dhyani Buddhas and a Sakyamuni triad group within a peaked enclosure, traces of malachite encrustation, wood stand and wood box

Good overall condition, with just minor surface wear and oxidisation.
"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."

A closely related votive figure from the collection of Charles Lang Freer, now in the Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., is illustrated in Marylin Martin Rhie, Early Buddhist Art of China and Central Asia, vol. 2, Leiden, 2002, figs. 2.71a-b. Similar to the Freer example, the current figure was created by piece-mould casting, hence showing minor metal flashing along its mould seams. For a detailed discussion of this method of casting, see Donna Strahan, 'Creating Sacred Images of the Buddha,' Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2010, pp. 27-33, where the Freer example is illustrated again, fig. 32.

Figures cast with similar registers on the back are illustrated by Saburo Matsubara, Chinese Buddhist Sculptures, Tokyo, 1966, pp. 256, figs. 222A-B, and pl. 28(c-d); a rare figure of a seated Amitabha Buddha, dated to the second year of Yongping (509), is illustrated in Gems of Beijing Cultural Relics Series. Buddhist Statues, vol. 1, Beijing, 2001, pl. 8; another figure of a seated Buddha with three dhyani Buddhas on the mandorla, dated to the third year of Zhengguan (522) of the Northern Wei, is illustrated in Ji Chong Jian, The Buddhist Bronzes, Taipei, 1994, pl. 94, in the Shanghai Museum collection. See also a standing figure of Buddha, wearing a monk's robe with hundreds of small folds, similar to the present piece, included in the Shanghai Museum. Ancient Chinese Sculpture Gallery, Shanghai, p. 7; and another included in the exhibition Kondo Butsu, Sen-oku Hakukokan, Tokyo, 2004, cat. no. 7, from the Sumitomo collection. See also a closely related example sold in our New York rooms, 22nd September 2005, lot 9.

These dhyani Buddhas were celestial Buddhas visualised during meditation, with the word 'dhyani' derived from the Sanskrit word meaning 'meditation'. They represent various aspects of the enlightened consciousness and are guides to one's spiritual transformation. As small votive images of Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future, were popular at this time, it is possible that the entire stele read together represents the San Shi Fo, the Buddhas of the Three Periods, when combined with the main images on the reverse side of Prabhutaratna, the Buddha of the Past, in conversation with Sakyamuni, the Buddha of the Present Age.