A large carved wood figure of Guanyin. Ming Dynasty

A large carved wood figure of Guanyin. Ming Dynasty

The Goddess of Mercy standing on a double-lotus pedestal, her right hand raised in abhayamudra and her left stretched alongside her body holding the celestial scarf flowing from the shoulders and falling in soft ripples, wearing an elaborate crown surrounding the high chignon above the benevolent face, adorned with beaded and floral jewellery. 117cm (46in) high. Sold for £14,400

Provenance: a Spanish private collection

Note: A certificate issued by RCD RadioCarbon Dating, Oxford, dated 9 February 2009, confirms a radiocarbon dating to AD1480-1660 (95% accuracy)

A slightly smaller related example (70cm high) in the National Museum of History is illustrated Buddhist Art in China, Taipei, 1978, fig.45.

Bonhams. Fine Chinese Art, 14 May 2009. New Bond Street www.bonhams.com