A good and finely cast Chinese gilt bronze figure... Lot 221

A good and finely cast Chinese gilt bronze figure of Buddha Seated in Dhyanasana, enclosing a Dhatu Sarira and with remains of incised six character Yongle presentation mark and probably of period (1403-1425) 25.5 cm high. Provenance: Deceased Estate, Hertfordshire. Note: Computed tomography imaging shows that there is a single bead-shaped object purposefully hidden in a seal secret compartment of the Buddha's head. Sarira is the generic term referring to Buddhist relics shaped as pearl or crystal-like beads. According to legend, Buddha left 84,000 relics which, together with those of important Buddhist spiritual matters in Tibet, were kept and worshipped by Buddhists. Other factors which point towards the present lot being of the period are the interior thick black patina to the unsealed interior, which is indicative of Song or Ming bronzes, unlike the more green-like patina of later Qing bronzes. To the exterior, the wear and loss to the original gilding suggests years of handling, moving and cleaning. The incised Yongle mark - Da Ming Yong Le Year Shi has faded over time and been obscured but most of the text's Ming Court style characters can be seen. Similarities are drawn between the present lot's Yongle mark and a similar gilt bronze Buddha displayed in Room 33 on the Ground Floor at the British Museum. While the Buddha's snail-shell hair curls have been worn smooth over the centuries, some spiral curls are still present to the top of the head as well as around the pendulous ears. The remains of tight snail-shell curls, together with remnants of blue pigment, allude to an early date. Generally good condition, expected wear, stress fracture to arm, rubbing to gilding, unsealed, over-cleaned in parts at some stage.