Sculptures and Carvings

Thai Sandstone Carving of the Head of A Buddha Image, Ayutthaya, 15th Century. This sculpture has carved features with full lips outlined with an incised line known as a “trace”, the “U” of the chin broad, long aquiline nose , protruding large and arched eye lids with the eyes narrowly open revealing the pupils, over  arching brow continuing the line of the nose, short forehead,  a thin raised outline as the hairline surrounding the face, 6 rows of round boss hair curls to the domed usnisa covered in 5 rows of hair curls, large ears with attenuated earlobes reaching to the break at the neck, flat top to the usnisa and a flat area to the back of the head. The facial surface gessoed lacquered and gold leafed, the rest of the head with Varied surface mottling and lacquer remnants mostly revealing the sandstone texture of the material. Mounted with a post and drilled interior hole to a large solid teak block as a contemporary stand. Condition: A sculpture fragment from a large Buddhist Image, The head has been removed at the neck and the flat area at the top of the head would indicate that another mortared segment would have originally been attached possibly an undulant unalom finial, otherwise remarkably fine. Measuring: 23-1/8 inches high overall, the sculpture is 15 inches high x 10 inches wide x 10-1/4 inches deep. The wood base is 8-1/8 inches high x 7-7/8 inches wide x 7-5/8 inches deep. Provenance: with Kenneth Brown Jewelers...

A pair of wood fragments carved in high relief with overlapping leaves of magnolia and mimosa, fronting blossoms of magnolia and reeded fractions of columns. Hand carved, solid wood,...

Only One. For Your Garden setting or Indoors Beautiful deep resonating ring tones await the new owner of this one-of-a-kind master bronze work. This superb antique hand cast bronz...

This is an antique netsuke made in Japan around Showa period 1970s. Netsuke is a miniature sculpture, originating in 17th century Japan. Initially a simply-carved button fastener on...

Monumental Chinese serpentine jade carved pagoda censer, early 20th century. A masterfully carved Chinese serpentine pagoda censer. The base of the...

Vintage midcentury hand carved ebony wooden Balinese busts sculptures. Hand carved sculpture in wood depicting a Balinese couple. Bust of a man and wom...

A beautiful solid stone statue of Buddha Amitabha. The face broad in Tang dynasty style, with downcast eyes and long earlobes, neatly coiled hair mounted...

This wooden doll is called Kokeshi in Japanese. This kokeshi was made by a kokeshi artist Sakyo NIIYAMA. He was born in 1934, 18th March. It is made with Yajiro style from Miyagi p...

This is a wooden kokeshi doll made around 1980s in Showa era. It was made in Nagano prefecture in Japan. The wood is a white birch. Betula platyphylla, the Asian white birch or Jap...

This is a wooden doll which is called Kokeshi in Japanese. This kokeshi was made with Togatta style. And the kokeshi artist who made this is Kouichi SATO. He was born in 1929, 22nd N...

A beautiful pair of monumental vintage bone inlay Chinese pagoda temples with miniature figurines. This super chic pair is a beautiful addition to any roo...

A decorative handmade sculpture or statue. Showing Brahma, the first of the three Hindu trinity, he is the creator of the universe. He is depicted with four faces looking at the four...

A Magnificent Chinese Carnelian Agate Snuff Bottle. Qing Dynasty. Antique Chinese Carnelian Agate Hand Carved Snuff Bottle finely carved in...

A rice granary door from the Lampung, Sumatra., Indonesia c. 1900. It features a wonderful age-related patina, with strong wood textures and shades. A unique sculptural object to bri...

Enjoyable wooden statue with a smiling sleeping Chinese baby, with the head resting on a pillow. This was used as a head rest for elaborate hairstyles of...

Tibetan wooden Buddhist Mahakala mask (Shaman Exorcism Mask Yama God of Death) with stand. Age: Tibet, 19th Century Size: Height 36.6 C.M. / Width 2...

This is a kokeshi doll made with a white birch. It was made around 1980s in Showa era. This kokeshi is with new style. Dimension: H21 x 6.5 x 6.5 cm Betula platyphylla, the Asian ...

A well carved wooden portrait bust of an elderly man carved by a Balinese artist around the mid 20th century. The bust is carved from a single piece if wood and is well carved with g...

We Japanese introduce unique items with unique aesthetics, purchasing routes and methods that no one can imitate. This is a small wooden Buddha statue made in the Edo period in Japan. And this pose is called "Shaka Nyorai". It is the highest Buddhist statue in Buddhism. It is a very precious existence that saves the lives of many people. I think it was in a private house such as a small village. Since it is a simple sculpture, it was not carved by a person who specializes in carving Buddha...

A unique and enchanting pair of 19th Century Tibetan carved wood & polychromed foo/guardian/temple dogs. These mythical Buddhist temple dogs, also known...

A highly decorative carved wood West African tribal mask decorated in blue and red polychrome colours on a black ground. In very good condition wi...

Pair of Chinese Carved Hardwood figure of Foo dogs with Rolling 'Pearls' & Puzzle Balls China Mid 20th Century A fine pair of Chinese carved hardwood figures of Foo dogs from mid-20th century China. These exquisite hand-carved wooden Foo dogs display the exceptional craftsmanship of Chinese artisans. Each Foo dog is well carved, capturing the regal and protective essence of these revered guardian lions. Adding to their allure, these Foo dogs feature a unique and captivating detail: a rolling wood...

Rare and complete Antique Japanese carved stone architectural model of a traditional Folk Cottage. Having a doorway and grid window at the fron...

This is a wooden doll which was made in Japan around 1950 in Showa era. This kind of dolls are called Kokeshi in Japanese. This kokeshi's style is Naruko from Miyagi prefecture. This kokeshi was made by a kokeshi artist Takumi KUMAGAYA. You can find his signature on the bottom of this doll. Kokeshi are wheel-carved wooden dolls. Characterized by a big head and a stable silhouette with a chrysanthemum pattern, Naruko kokeshi dolls...

Exceptional Large Incised Lacquer Hsun-ok Offering Box With Interior Tray, Bagan, 20th Century.   The large round bowl form is for holding cooked rice and the interior tray is for ho...

Fabulous vintage Asian Tang Dynasty horse. Beautiful 19th century terra cotta with a beautiful distressed finish. Acquired from a Palm Beach estate.

A tribal door from a Lopo Round hut from tribes people on the island of Timor, Indonesia. A Lopo house is a communal hut where the tribe convenes with a second story used to store gr...

A unique silhouette with generous curves and an impacting yet joyful sculpture on the front, this desk is a one of a kind. This piece dates back to the 1970s and it manifests a desig...

Guanyin in carved wood and polichrome, China, early 20th century, Asian art Measures: H 56cm, W 16cm, W 15cm.

A small desk top Chinese scholar stones (also known as Gong Shi, meditation stone and spirit rock) on a fitted display wood stand circa 19th century. This is likely a grey Lingbi type stone with subtle arch mimics a horizontal mountain range. The wrinkles and folds on the greyish black surface were perfectly weathered by elements for millenniums. Smooth and rugged at the same time, the mountain range shows a poetic formation that was often depicted in the ink scroll...

Very Unusual Horn Sectional Hand Carved Chinese Walking Stick or Dress Cane of outstanding quality, last half of the Nineteenth Century. The ...

A beautiful, wonderfully crafted, alluring mask made for Japanese Noh theatre. The mask is handcrafted and hand-carved from natural wood and is signed by the maker. This mask is of the immortal character Doji who symbolizes perpetual and eternal youth ("doji" literally translates as "child") in the Noh theater world. He is portrayed as a handsome male...

This is a very old Japanese "KOMAINU". It is an item from the early Edo period (1600s-1700s). It is carved from cedar wood. A-Un," or "A-Un," is the Japanese word for "guardian dog....

A truly magnificent and special work - this beautiful and exceptionally long string of Japanese handcrafted natural wood (perhaps rosewood) Buddhist Juzu mala beads with four large square-like beads called shitenshu beads said to represent the Four Heavenly Kings: Jikko-Ten, Zocho-ten, Hiromoku-ten, and Tamon-ten (Since there are four square beads, the denomination is probably Tendai or Nichiren sect). These rosary-type prayer bead necklaces were used by Buddhist monks in temple prayers / rituals and worn by Samurai as amulets of protection. We have not come across another set of Juzu beads...

Nostalgic opportunity America's friendly gnomes- a rare pair (2) of Happy Garden Legends "Keeper of Keys" and bearer of the night lights. Si...

An exceptionally hand-carved antique Chinese soapstone spill vase - spill holder (see below), profusely decorated and intricately detailed naturalistic sc...

A pair of finely hand-carved soap stone bookends featuring high relief landscape scenes with dragon heads. Perfect to use on a desk as a paper weight or decorative object around the house or office. Highly decorative and fitting for any interior style. Fantastic openwork carving of a dragon amidst floating clouds...

Chinese guardian lions, or imperial guardian lions, are a traditional Chinese architectural ornament. Typically made of stone, they are also known as stone lions or shishi (石獅; shíshī). They are known in colloquial English as lion dogs or foo dogs / fu dogs. The concept, which originated and became popular in Chinese Buddhism, features a pair of highly stylized lions—often one male with a ball and one female with a cub—which were thought to protect the building from harmful spiritual influences and harmful people that might be a threat. Used in imperial Chinese palaces and tombs, the lions subsequently spread to other parts of Asia including Japan (see komainu), Korea, Philippines, Tibet, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Cambodia, Laos, and Malaysia. There has been extensive interaction between Chinese mythology and Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Elements of pre-Han dynasty mythology such as those in Classic of Mountains and Seas were adapted into these belief systems as they developed (in the case of Taoism), or were assimilated into Chinese culture (in the case of Buddhism). Elements from the teachings and beliefs of these systems became incorporated into Chinese mythology. For example, the Taoist belief of a spiritual Paradise became incorporated into mythology as the place where immortals and deities used to dwell. Sometimes mythological and religious ideas have become widespread across China's many regions and diverse ethnic societies. In other cases, beliefs are more limited to certain social groups, for example, the veneration of white stones by the Qiang. One mythological theme that has a long history and many variations involves a shamanic world view, for example in the cases of Mongolian shamanism among the Mongols, Hmong shamanism among the Miao people, and the shamanic beliefs of the Qing dynasty from 1643 to 1912, derived from the Manchus. Politically, mythology was often used to legitimize the dynasties of China, with the founding house of a dynasty claiming a divine descent. Mythology and philosophy. Further information: Chinese philosophy True mythology is distinguished from philosophical treatises and theories. Elaborations on the Wu Xing are not really part of mythology, although belief in five elements could appear. The Hundred Schools of Thought is a phrase suggesting the diversity of philosophical thought that developed during the Warring States of China. Then, and subsequently, philosophical movements had a complicated relationship with mythology. However, as far as they influence or are influenced by mythology, divides the philosophical camps into two rough halves, a Liberal group and a Conservative group. The liberal group being associated with the idea of individuality and change, for example as seen in the mythology of divination in China, such as the mythology of the dragon horse that delivered the eight bagua diagrams to Fu Xi, and methods of individual empowerment as seen in the Yi Jing (Book of Changes). The Liberal tendency is towards individual freedom, Daoism, and Nature. The relationship of the Conservative philosophies to mythology is seen in the legendary Nine Tripod Cauldrons, mythology about the emperors and central bureaucratic governance, Confucianism, written histories, ceremonial observances, subordination of the individual to the social groups of family and state, and a fixation on stability and enduring institutions. The distinction between the Liberal and Conservative is very general, but important in Chinese thought. Contradictions can be found in the details, however these are often traditional, such as the embrace by Confucius of the philosophical aspects of the Yi Jing, and the back-and-forth about the Mandate of Heaven wherein one dynasty ends and another begins based according to accounts (some of heavily mythological) where the Way of Heaven results in change, but then a new ethical stable dynasty becomes established. Examples of this include the stories of Yi Yin, Tang of Shang and Jie of Xia or the similar fantastic stories around Duke of Zhou and King Zhou of Shang. Mythology exists in relationship with other aspects of society and culture, such as ritual. Various rituals are explained by mythology. For example, the ritual burning of mortuary banknotes (Hell Money), lighting fireworks, and so on. A good example of the relationship of Chinese mythology and ritual is the Yubu, also known as the Steps or Paces of Yu. During the course of his activities in controlling the Great Flood, Yu was supposed to have so fatigued himself that he lost all the hair from his legs and developed a serious limp. Daoist practitioners sometimes incorporate a curiously choreographed pedal locomotion into various rituals. Mythology and practice, one explains the other: in these rituals, the sacred time of Yu merges with the sacral practice of the present. Various ideas about the nature of the earth, the universe, and their relationship to each other have historically existed as either a background or a focus of mythologies. One typical view is of a square earth separated from a round sky by sky pillars (mountains, trees, or undefined). Above the sky is the realm of Heaven, often viewed of as a vast area, with many inhabitants. Often the heavenly inhabitants are thought to be of an "as above so below" nature, their lives and social arrangements being parallel to those on earth, with a hierarchical government run by a supreme emperor, many palaces and lesser dwellings, a vast bureaucracy of many functions, clerks, guards, and servants. Below was a vast under ground land, also known as Diyu, Yellow Springs, Hell, and other terms. As time progressed, the idea of an underground land in which the souls of the departed were punished for their misdeeds during life became explicit, related to developments in Daoism and Buddhism. The underground world also came to be conceived of as inhabited by a vast bureaucracy, with kings, judges, torturers, conductors of souls, minor bureaucrats, recording secretaries, similar to the structure of society in the Middle Kingdom (earthly China). Chinese temple Dogs...

Painted carved wood of Buddhisattva sitting on an elephant on lotus crown seat

Chinese Sancai glazed ceramic figurine depicting Yinglong, the dragon deity standing on all fours, a sphere clenched in its mouth. Chipping along the bottom paws, some glaze loss...

Excellent condition! This Chinese cloisonné fish is detailed in turquoise and blues; very detailed fish figurine; figurine can detach from base to sit ...

Japanese dolls called Kokeshi of the early 20th century. Provenance from the northern Japan. Set of 2. Measures: 30 x 8.5 cm 27 x 7.5 cm Handmade by Japanese artisants...

Beautiful pair (2) old Japanese vintage gilt pheasant bird sculptures. Marked Japan on bottoms. From our recent Japanese acquisitions in original condition with original attractive gilding present. Japan, an attractive and iconic pair (2) pheasant sculptures with original gilt patina. One is poised with vertical tail and thehy other in a seated horizontal position. The pheasant is considered Japan's national bird. This creative simple adaption makes a compelling contemporary pair of sculptures. Fine original used condition with original gold gilt patina appropriate to their age. Original gilt patina from age. Dimensions: 7 inches tall and 6.5 inches wide Photographed in natural day light. Quality: Excellent quality and fine craftsmanship by Japanese specialized artisans Provenance: authentic Japanese examples (see labels). Lifetime guarantee of authenticity. All of our Asian works of art come with our lifetime authenticity guarantee. About Japan's Green Pheasant In Japanese culture, the green pheasant is unofficially considered the national bird of the country owing to its references in ancient folk tales of Japan. The green pheasant was said to be a messenger of the Sun Goddess...

Burmese pottery standing Buddha. Age: Burma, Ava Period, 15th Century Size: Height 13.4 C.M. / Width 6.2 C.M. / Length 10.7 C.M. Condition: Nice c...

It is a wooden folk craft in the shape of a bear. Mainly manufactured in Hokkaido. It is a wood carving made from 1930 to 1950. The eyes are made of glass. This type is rare in Japa...

A beautifully carved, wonderfully crafted, highly engaging mask made for Japanese Noh theatre. The mask is handcrafted and hand carved from natural wood and is signed and sealed b...

These are early 20th century carved panels from Timor Island, they have been hand carved and feature a mix of human and animal figures. They also feature ceremonial tribal designs on...

An antique 19th century Indonesian carved wooden panel from a temple entrance, with scrolling foliage. Only one of the panels in the photo is no...

This Seal is in Soapstone, in white color. This has been made in China. The Period is the Republic Period, circa 1930. It is Hand-carved, and polished.

A rice granary door from the Batak Tribes people of Lake Toba, central Sumatra., Indonesia c. 1900. It features a wonderful age-related patina, with strong wood textures and shades. ...

A decorative hand carved Thai giltwood standing Buddha on a lotus flower with black square base. The costume is layered and flowing and the facial expression is peaceful with a grin....

A wonderful, beautifully crafted Japanese festival Shishi Lion Dance (Shishi Mai) mask (Gashira). The shishi mask represents a mythical lion that prote...

A truly beautiful and supremely serene Japanese Amida Nyorai Buddha. A magnificent work. Meticulously hand carved in such fine and amazing detail (see hands and flowing robes). Gilded throughout. Seated with narrowed eyes in deep meditation and hands in Buddhist Abhaya Mudra position offering a blessing of protection, reassurance, peace, and benevolence. This hand position, also known as the "fear not" gesture, was achieved by Buddha immediately following his enlightenment. This work is from the late Edo period, (1603-1868)/ early Meiji period (1868-1912). From a California collection. Would be a fantastic addition to any Japanese or Asian artifacts/buddha collection or eye-catching stand-alone accent work in about any setting. One of the best Japanese Buddha sculptures...

A wonderfully sculpted Thai/ Siam Southeast Asian bronze Buddha head on a custom wood and lucite stand. The Buddha's eyes are closed in serene medi...

3-175 Segment of a branch from a cypress tree set on a steped wood base wood base 7.5 x 7.5"

This is a very old Japanese carved wooden turtle. This item is from the Edo period (1800s-1860s). It is made of cedar wood. Very rare item. Turtles have...

This 18th-century carved wooden figure likely depicts the Jade Emperor, the supreme monarch of heaven and earth in Chinese folklore and Taoist mythology. Ruler of all deities and ben...

400 - 600 Year old charming and artistic sandstone relief. Dragon "mythical beast" which is a symbol of wisdom. From Buddha temple in Arakan, Burma....