10th Apr, 2025 11:00
TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism
36
A FINE LIMESTONE HEAD OF BUDDHA, NORTHERN QI DYNASTY
€4,000
€8,000
A buyer’s premium of 30.00% (including VAT) applies to the hammer price of this lot if your bid is successful.
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 16 April 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 the period.
Provenance: From a private collection in New York, United States.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, obvious losses, structural fissures, signs of weathering, encrustations, chips, nicks.
Weight: 10,856 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 25.7 cm (excl. stand), 36.5 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: Related
Auction: Christie’s London, 11 May 2010, lot 183
Price: GBP 43,250 or approx. EUR 90,500 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 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 16 April 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 the period.
Provenance: From a private collection in New York, United States.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age. Wear, obvious losses, structural fissures, signs of weathering, encrustations, chips, nicks.
Weight: 10,856 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 25.7 cm (excl. stand), 36.5 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: Related
Auction: Christie’s London, 11 May 2010, lot 183
Price: GBP 43,250 or approx. EUR 90,500 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 modeling and manner of carving with similar facial features, whorl-like curls, and size (28 cm). Note the different material.
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Auction: TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism, 10th Apr, 2025
Galerie Zacke is privileged to present a remarkable two-day live auction event, featuring 684 works of art from China, Southeast Asia, India, and beyond.
The highlight is our flagship live auction on Day 1, showcasing lots 1-269, Among the many standout pieces are a ge-type octagonal bowl from the Southern Song dynasty, part of the Jules Speelman collection (lot 137), a rare 1st-2nd century gold figure of a mother goddess from the Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum collection (lot 176), as well as a group of four parcel-gilt bronze Bodhisattvas from the Bao-Xiang Lo Palace and Temple, with Qianlong marks and of the period (lot 52).
Day 2 continues with our general auction (lots 270-684), offering seasoned collectors and new bidders alike an opportunity to enhance their collections. Learn more.
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