NORTHERN QI-SUI DYNASTY, 6TH CENTURY

The rigid, frontal pose of this figure is typical of Northern Qi and Sui dynasty stone sculptures of bodhisattvas. See, for example, a sandstone figure of a standing bodhisattva at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, illustrated in Zhongguo liu shi hai wai fo jiao zao xiang zong he tu mu (Comprehensive Illustrated Catalogue of Chinese Buddhist Statues in Overseas Collections), vol. 3, Beijing, 2005, no. 588. The depiction of the drapery over the lower body, with an unusually long portion of the dhoti folded over and rippling folds beneath, is rare but can be found on a few known examples, including a marble figure of a bodhisattva at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, illustrated in Chinese Art in Overseas Collections: Buddhist Sculpture (II), Taipei, 1990, no. 63. The rectangular belt pendant below the circular disc is also an unusual feature, but a comparable example can be found on a Northern Zhou gilt-bronze figure of Guanyin illustrated by Jin Shen in Illustrated Chinese Buddha Images Through the Ages, Beijing, 1995, p. 301, no. 221. The presence of shoes on the present figure is also unusual, as they are more often seen on images of guardian or warrior figures.