Chinese Antique Stone Bodhisattva Hand-Carved, 120 Years Old

China, a monumental pair (2) of 500 year old lime stone “Spirit Path” Equine horse head sculptures. Ming dynasty, (1368-1644 CE). A pair of near life size and robust head sections with fine, wavy combed manes, well defined mouths, ears, nostrils, and ornamental bridles, all carved in a medium to dark gray limestone with considerable weathering to surfaces. The smaller head with a later inscription on bottom and signed “Zhuang”. Formerly exhibited “Treasures from Asia”, Shelburne Vermont, Shelburne Art Center, 2006. Originally found in the vicinity of the village of Chuan near Luoyang City, Henan Provance, China. Each mounted on a custom iron display stand. Dimensions: A the smaller 32.5cm, 13” high and 62.5cm, 25” in length and with display stand, 60cm, 24” high; b the larger 37.5cm, 15” high and 67.5cm, 27” in length and with display stand 65cm, 26” high. Please view additional photographs from our Chinese antiquities catalog 35 Years Collecting 35 Treasures, page 60. History: Placing stone animals and human figures along spirit paths in front of important tombs can be traced back at least to the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE), some two thousand years ago. In ancient times, stone animals and human figures placed before imperial tombs symbolized royal power and privilege in addition to decorative functions. Life size “spirit path” stone horse sculptures are known and can be viewed from Ming dynasty tombs including thirteen imperial tombs of the Ming Dynasty scattered over an area of forty square kilometers in Changping District to the northwest of Beijing. The first Ming tomb...

Instant display and collection, one of a kind #2 From western China and collected some 20 years ago, comes this group of three (3) large hand carved red sandstone Lohans or Monks da...

China Monumental Pair (2) Antique Stone “Spirit Pathway” Tigers, middle Qing period 1750-1850. Dimensions: 115cm, 46” high and 60cm, 24” in width. Likely utilized as spirit pathway...

China, an authentic antique hand-carved and hand-painted limestone temple figure of the venerable lohan, Kasyapa. This beautiful Buddhist sculpture will bring serenity and timeless style to your home, office, sacred space, or garden Substantial dimensions: 35 inches high and 12 inches wide Handmade and hand-carved, solid limestone with weathered remnants of older temple paint as applied by the temple from where it originally came, Chengdu, China. Head and hands are later replacements. Stone statues like these were regularly - refreshed- by the temple monks. In our extensive travels to western china we saw many instances of old stone figures like this with varying degrees of paint refreshing, ,replacement of heads as this one, and periodic refreshment by the temple monks to maintain a seemingly new appearance. Please note the offering cavity on his back side- undoubtedly used by patrons to place offering scripts or perhaps food as a sign of respect and veneration. This enjoyable character would make a fine garden presentation or special indoor choice. Only one. Provenance: Originally from a collector in Chengdu, China, acquired by us directly from this collection around 2002 on one of our many visits to that part of historic China. About Kasyapa: Kasyapa is a revered Vedic sage of Hinduism. He was one of the seven ancient sages considered as Saptarishis in Sanskrit texts and Indian mythologies. He is the most ancient rishi listed in the colophon verse in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad and called a self-made scholar in the Atharvaveda. He was based in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, and legends attribute the region of Kashmir to be derived from his name. One of the more frequently depicted lohans in Chinese sculpture is Kasyapa, a cousin to the Buddha. Throughout Six dynasties...

From our recent Japanese acquisitions. Japan, a hard to find heavily hand cast frog or toad -kaeru- sculpture weighing almost 4 pounds, circa 1920 It is mar...

Hard to Find Pair from the 19th Century From China's Qing dynasty (1644-1912) a hard to find pair (2) of limestone finely carved pedestals - perfect for displaying your indoor or o...

The features of this stone Foo lion has been softened by being exposed to the elements for many centuries. Still a very handsome sculptural specimen made from carved stone, it is kno...

A Chinese Qing Dynasty period carved stone foo dog guardian lion from the 19th century, on square base. Created in China during the Qing Dynasty, this st...

A large Chinese vintage hand-carved white stone Buddhist temple sculpture of a bodhisattva. This large size Chinese sculpture was carved from a white stone and showcases a bodhisattv...

Hand-carved from a single block of limestone, this stone fu dog sits at attention as a watchful guardian of the home. He exudes a remarkable sense of life and energy - crouched on al...

Often referred to as “Fu Dogs” in western culture, these handsome stone sentinels are iconic gatekeepers seen throughout China and elsewhere in Asia. Traditional symbols of protectio...

Rare pair of large Chinese carved stone foo dog guardian lions. Originated from a house of a mandarin (a public official in the Chinese Empire), located on The Silk Road. Here they were placed in front of the gate, with the gate doors mounted on the base behind the lions. The pair consist of a male with a ball on his back, and a female holding a puppy. The ball represents the world and the puppy represents nature or a nurturing spirit. One stand lightly carved with a horse, the other with a deer. The front of the stand is carved with camel...