A FINELY CARVED HONGMU FIGURE OF THE BODHIDHARMA, DAMO, 18TH-19TH CENTURY

拍品描述

A FINELY CARVED HONGMU FIGURE OF THE BODHIDHARMA, DAMO, 18TH-19TH CENTURY China. Finely carved, seated with his left hand resting on a gnarled wooden support, the right hand holding a scroll, he is dressed in loose-fitting robes opening at the chest, his balding head detailed with furrowed brows above a pointed nose and delicately curled facial hair. Dimensions: Height 25.7 cm Legendary accounts surrounding the life and character of Bodhidharma (Damo), the Indian founder of Chan (Zen) Buddhism in China, did not end with his death. According to a legend recorded as early as the 10th century, Bodhidharma rose after death and returned to India, where he was encountered by the Chinese monk Song Yun, who reported that Bodhidharma wore only one shoe. When Bodhidharma’s tomb was later opened, only the second, missing shoe was said to have been found. Expert’s note: The term hongmu (紅木, literally “red wood”) historically refers to a group of dense, reddish- to dark-brown tropical hardwoods used in Chinese sculpture and furniture, rather than to a single botanical species. It became particularly important during the middle and late Qing dynasty, when supplies of the more prestigious huanghuali and zitan became increasingly scarce. Much Qing dynasty hongmu furniture was made from woods belonging to the Dalbergia and related genera, including varieties traditionally known as suanzhi (“sour wood”), a name derived from the distinctive pungent odor released when the timber is worked. With age, hongmu typically develops a rich reddish to deep tobacco-brown surface and can closely resemble both huanghuali and zitan. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2 May 2005, lot 662 Estimate: HKD 400,000 or approx. EUR 73,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the similar subject and manner of carving. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2 May 2014, lot 21 Price: HKD 275,000 or approx. EUR 39,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the similar subject and manner of carving. Note the different wood.

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