A GILT-BRONZE REPOUSSÉ FIGURE OF THE CONTEMPLATING WISDOM BUDDHA, GUAN CHA HUI FO, QIANLONG INCISED SEVEN-CHARACTER MARK AND PERIOD

Expert’s note: This magnificent bronze belongs to a large group of Buddhas specially commissioned by the Imperial Court during the celebrated reign of the Qianlong Emperor. Each of these figures is given a different name, although all are seated in meditation with the right hand touching the earth, a gesture only Akshobhya and Shakyamuni are typically depicted in. The bases are inscribed in multiple languages including Chinese, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Manchu. Two buddhas from the same group, named Duan E and Wubian Yin, were sold in these rooms, 11 April 2024, lots 57 and 58, see auction result comparison below.

China, 1736-1795. Well modeled seated in dhyanasana on a waisted double-lotus base with a beaded rim, his right hand lowered in bhumisparsha mudra and the left gently lowered above his lap, the shoulders covered with a shawl, the long robes opening at the chest and tied at the midriff, richly detailed with naturalistic folds.

His rounded face in a serene expression with piercing eyes and bow-shaped lips forming a subtle smile, flanked by enlongated earlobes. His hair arranged in tight spiked curls over the high ushnisha topped by a bud-shaped jewel.

The front edge of the base incised with a central seven-character mark da Qing Qianlong nian jingzao and of the period.

Inscriptions: The lotus pedestal is incised to the top with a three-syllable Tibetan inscription rendered in Uchen script, ‘Shi de jha’ (peace). The front side along the base’s rim with a Chinese inscription, ‘Respectfully made during the Qianlong reign’, flanked by another Chinese inscription on the left reading ‘Guan cha hui Fo’ (Contemplating Wisdom Buddha), and another Tibetan inscription on the right reading, ‘Phel Ghi Tsizeh’ (radiant beauty). The two narrow sides are further inscribed with Manchu and Mongolian script, respectively.

Provenance: From a private collection in Australia, acquired in Thailand during the 1970s and thence by descent. The interior of the base inscribed in black lacquer, ‘Shen gong fa wan’ (Collection of Mr. Shen).
Condition: Very good condition with expected wear and manufacturing irregularities, few tiny gaps probably inherent to the manufacture, some rubbing and minor losses to gilt, few small tears to the lower edge of the base, minor dents, few minuscule nicks and small surface scratches, remnants of pigment. The base unsealed. The bronze with a rich, naturally grown, warm patina.

Weight: 2 kg
Dimensions: Height 32.2 cm

The Contemplating Wisdom Buddha (Guan cha hui Fo) is mentioned in Book 39 of the Avatamsaka Sutra, in a long list of nearly two hundred buddha names recited by Queen Maya, who vows to mother them all. See Bhikshu Dharmamitra, The Flower Adornment Sutra. An Annotated Translation of the Avataṃsaka Sutra. With a Commentarial Synopsis of the Flower Adornment Sutra, Volume Three, 2022, p. 2119. In his translation of a Tang-dynasty edition of the Avatamsaka, Bhikshu Dharmamitra (ordination name Heng Shou) reads ‘Guan cha hui’ as ‘Contemplating Wisdom’, while the original Sanskrit term is Vipassana, a Buddhist concept that refers to a wisdom that penetrates the essence of all phenomena and recognizes the ultimate truth. It is a central method in Buddhist practice: through mindful observation and analysis, delusions are dispelled, and true insight is gained.

Titled ‘Entering the Dharmarealm’ in Chinese and also known as the Gandavyuha Sutra, Book 39 is the longest in the Avatamsaka and depicts one of the world's most celebrated spiritual pilgrimages. It contains the story of the bodhisattva Sudhana's spiritual career. Sudhana is a young man who hears Manjushri teaching and is inspired to seek awakening. Manjushri sends him to his first teacher, and this begins Sudhana's quest, which leads him to study under a series of teachers of all types, including great bodhisattvas like Avalokiteshvara, until his journey reaches full circle and he awakens to teachings of the Buddha.

This elegant and fluidly rendered figure represents the Qianlong Emperor's devotion to Tibetan Buddhism. After the Qing dynasty established their capital at Beijing, during the process of consolidating their rule Tibetan Buddhism was adopted to assist in the collaboration of the Mongols and Tibetans to unify China. Thus, Buddhist figures and ritual implements of the Qing period were often an amalgam of Tibetan and Palace styles, as exemplified in the present piece. A stele in the Yonghe Palace, Beijing, records the words of the Qianlong emperor, ‘If one sufficiently promulgates Tibetan Buddhism the Mongols will not rise up. This is a very important thing’.

The polyglot inscriptions on the present lot are perhaps indicative of the role that Vajrayana Buddhism played for the court in consolidating control over the Han, Manchu, Mongol, and Tibetan subjects of the Qing realm. In addition, the specific identification of this figure belies an emphasis on iconography that was of paramount importance to the Qianlong Emperor. Patricia Berger discusses both of these issues at length in her Empire of Emptiness: Buddhist Art and Political Authority in Qing China, 2003, passim.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related gilt-bronze figure of a seated Buddha, similarly inscribed in Chinese, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Sanskrit, and also with a Qianlong mark and of the period, 30.2 cm high, in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, accession number 479.1996.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 9 July 2020, lot 2710
Price: HKD 500,000 or approx. EUR 59,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-bronze repoussé figure of Velama buddha, Qianlong incised seven-character mark and of the period (1736-1795)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, modeling, repoussé work, seven-character Qianlong mark, and inscriptions in Chinese, Tibetan, and Manchu. Note the similar size (30.5 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Zacke, Vienna, 11 April 2024, lot 57
Price: EUR 91,000 or approx. EUR 94,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-bronze repoussé figure of Buddha Duan E, Qianlong incised seven-character mark and period
Expert remark: Duan E (literally ‘Breaker of Evil’) likely refers to the Buddha’s teaching on the ultimate destruction of evil at the end of the world in the Sattasuriya sutta (Sermon of the Seven Suns).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Zacke, Vienna, 11 April 2024, lot 58
Price: EUR 91,000 or approx. EUR 94,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-bronze repoussé figure of Buddha Wubian Yin, Qianlong incised seven-character mark and period
Expert remark: Wubian Yin appears in the Lotus Sutra, where the name refers to the ‘Boundless Sound’ of the enlightened Buddha’s voice.