Sold for €4,290
including Buyer's Premium
Expert authentication: Dr. Chang Qing has authenticated this lot, identifying its iconographic and stylistic characteristics as typical of Northern Qi images found in Shandong province. A notarized copy of Dr. Chang’s expertise, dated April 16, 2021, in the State of New York, accompanies this lot.
Dr. Chang holds a Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Kansas and has held prestigious positions, including post-doctoral fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and senior research fellow at the Freer and Sackler Galleries of the Smithsonian Institute. He has conducted extensive research in China, participating in archaeological excavations at various historical sites. Dr. Chang is the author of several influential works, including Compassionate Beings in Metal and Stone: Chinese Buddhist Sculptures from The Freer Gallery of Art (2016) and Light of the Buddha in the Desert: Essays on Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang from 5th-14th Centuries (2012). He is currently a professor at Arts College, Sichuan University.
China, 550-577. Exemplifying the classic, almost stoic elegance typical of Northern Qi sculpture, this piece is finely carved from exceptionally high-quality stone. The round face exudes a gently smiling, benevolent expression, with well-defined features such as heavy-lidded eyes, bow-shaped lips, and a prominent chin, all flanked by elongated earlobes. The head is surmounted by an ushnisha adorned with large, neatly incised whorl-like curls, further emphasizing the calm and dignified aura that is a hallmark of Northern Qi artistry.
Provenance: From a private collection in New York, United States.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, obvious losses, structural fissures, encrustations, chips, and nicks.
Weight: 14.2 kg (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 26 cm (excl. stand), 37.5 cm (incl. stand)
Mounted on a modern stand. (2)
The Northern Qi style is an indirect interpretation of the Indian Gupta style, particularly the Sarnath school, introduced to China via Central Asian trade routes. This adoption of foreign aesthetics reflects the socio-political shifts at the beginning of the Northern Qi period, when its rulers embraced non-Han stylistic traditions, in contrast to the Sinicization efforts of the Northern Wei rulers. Key characteristics of the Northern Qi style include the small mouth, thin nose, large elongated ears with flat, unpierced lobes, and distinctive whorl-like curls.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s London, 11 May 2010, lot 183
Price: GBP 43,250 or approx. EUR 89,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A white marble head of Buddha, Northern Qi dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, modeling, and manner of carving with similar facial features, whorl-like curls, and size (28 cm). Note the different material.
Expert authentication: Dr. Chang Qing has authenticated this lot, identifying its iconographic and stylistic characteristics as typical of Northern Qi images found in Shandong province. A notarized copy of Dr. Chang’s expertise, dated April 16, 2021, in the State of New York, accompanies this lot.
Dr. Chang holds a Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Kansas and has held prestigious positions, including post-doctoral fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and senior research fellow at the Freer and Sackler Galleries of the Smithsonian Institute. He has conducted extensive research in China, participating in archaeological excavations at various historical sites. Dr. Chang is the author of several influential works, including Compassionate Beings in Metal and Stone: Chinese Buddhist Sculptures from The Freer Gallery of Art (2016) and Light of the Buddha in the Desert: Essays on Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang from 5th-14th Centuries (2012). He is currently a professor at Arts College, Sichuan University.
China, 550-577. Exemplifying the classic, almost stoic elegance typical of Northern Qi sculpture, this piece is finely carved from exceptionally high-quality stone. The round face exudes a gently smiling, benevolent expression, with well-defined features such as heavy-lidded eyes, bow-shaped lips, and a prominent chin, all flanked by elongated earlobes. The head is surmounted by an ushnisha adorned with large, neatly incised whorl-like curls, further emphasizing the calm and dignified aura that is a hallmark of Northern Qi artistry.
Provenance: From a private collection in New York, United States.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, obvious losses, structural fissures, encrustations, chips, and nicks.
Weight: 14.2 kg (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 26 cm (excl. stand), 37.5 cm (incl. stand)
Mounted on a modern stand. (2)
The Northern Qi style is an indirect interpretation of the Indian Gupta style, particularly the Sarnath school, introduced to China via Central Asian trade routes. This adoption of foreign aesthetics reflects the socio-political shifts at the beginning of the Northern Qi period, when its rulers embraced non-Han stylistic traditions, in contrast to the Sinicization efforts of the Northern Wei rulers. Key characteristics of the Northern Qi style include the small mouth, thin nose, large elongated ears with flat, unpierced lobes, and distinctive whorl-like curls.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s London, 11 May 2010, lot 183
Price: GBP 43,250 or approx. EUR 89,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A white marble head of Buddha, Northern Qi dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, modeling, and manner of carving with similar facial features, whorl-like curls, and size (28 cm). Note the different material.
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