China, 1368-1644. The female deity portrayed with a benevolent face framed by an elaborate phoenix headdress, her hands clasping a gui tablet, wearing a finely layered, long, flowing robe with neatly incised floral hems and adorned with ruyi-shaped ornaments at the chest and shoulders. Beautiful hand painted base, most certainly a work by the painter who once owned the piece.

Provenance: Collection of Klaus Clausmeyer and thence by descent. Klaus Clausmeyer (1887-1968) was a German painter. He decided to collect Buddhist art during World War I, when a Buddha head rolled to his feet in an embattled city in Belgium. He built a substantial collection, which later focused on African and Oceanic art, the largest part of which is in the Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum in Cologne today. Old collector’s label ‘m 4’ to interior. See images for a painting by Klaus Clausmeyer which features the present lot in the front left.
Condition: Overall good condition with old wear and casting flaws, an old repair to the hands, few minor nicks, occasional light scratches, small losses, dents, cracks, extensive wear to gilt. The interior with remnants of malachite and extensive cuprite encrustation.

Weight: 1,951 g (excl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 27.5 cm (excl. stand) and 32 cm (incl. stand)

With a metal-fitted hardwood tripod stand, dating from the earlier 20^th century. (2)

The present figure can be identified as Bixia Yuanjun, also known as the Sovereign of the Clouds of Dawn or the Goddess of the Morning Clouds, by the representation of the three phoenixes in the headdress. The goddess was the daughter of the male god of Mount Tai, the easternmost of the Five Sacred Mountains in Shandong Province, where the Palace of the Clouds of Dawn, Bixia Gong, was built at the top of the mountain as her shrine during the Ming dynasty. Figures of Bixia Yuanjun are a personification of the yin force and made for use on Daoist altars.

Literature comparison: See a larger bronze figure of Bixia Yuanjun dated to the 15th century in the Art Institute of Chicago, illustrated in S. Little and K. Schipper, Taoism and the Arts of China, California, 2000, p. 278, no. 95. Compare also a slightly larger gilt-bronze figure of Bixia Yuanjun dated to the Ming dynasty in the British Museum, accession number 1908,0420.6.

Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related gilt bronze figure of Bixia Yuanjun, also dated to the Ming dynasty, at Bonhams London in Fine Chinese Art on 8 November 2018, lot 244, sold for GBP 6,000.

明代鎏金銅碧霞元君像
中國, 1368-1644年。元君面容慈祥，頭戴精美的鳳凰頭飾，雙手捧著一塊圭，身著一件飄逸長袍，花邊細節精美，胸前與肩部飾有如意形飾物。漂亮的手繪底座，幾乎能肯定是曾經擁有這件拍品的畫家的作品。

來源：Klaus Clausmeyer收藏，在同一家族保存至今。Klaus Clausmeyer（1887-1968）曾是一位德國畫家。第一次世界大戰期間，他在比利時的一個被圍困的城市裡，一個菩薩頭像滾到他的腳邊，從此他決定收集佛教藝術。後來他把收藏重點放在非洲和大洋洲的藝術品上。如今，其中最大的一部分收藏在科隆的Rautenstrauch-Joest博物館內。内部有藏家老標籤 ‘m 4’。參閱圖庫中一幅Klaus Clausmeyer的畫作，其中前排左側為此拍品。
品相：總體狀況良好，有舊磨損和鑄造缺陷，手部有舊修補，少量小劃痕，局部有輕微劃痕，小缺損，凹痕，裂紋，鍍金磨損嚴重。 內部有孔雀石綠色殘餘物和大量赤色結殼。

重量：1,951 克 (不含底座)
尺寸：高 27.5 厘米 (不含底座)，總 32 厘米

配有金屬硬木三足底座，可追溯至 20 世紀早期。(2)

拍賣結果比較：比較一件銅鎏金碧霞元君，明代，見倫敦邦翰思Fine Chinese Art 2018年11月8日 lot 244, 售價GBP 6,000。