A gilt-copper repoussé and gilt-copper alloy figure of an Arhat, Qing dynasty, 18th century

Collection of Baron Alexander Von Staël-Holstein (1877-1937).

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, acquired in 1952.

Sotheby’s London, 26th November 1984, lot 76.

The figure may represent the arhat Kanakavatsa, often portrayed with both hands raised holding a jewelled lasso (pasha), a gift from the Naga serpents of the cosmic ocean. The elder is seated on a rug draped over cushions all finely incised with scrolling vine motifs, vases, fruit and flowers. The pedestal is sealed beneath with a wood panel painted with a golden visvavajra. The robes and pedestal are richly fire-gilded contrasting with the face and hands which have remains of matt painted gold, a common practise of realism in the Qing Dynasty workshops of Beijing and Inner Mongolia.