A LARGE GILT AND LACQUERED WOOD FIGURE OF AMIDA... Lot n° 36

A LARGE GILT AND LACQUERED WOOD FIGURE OF AMIDA NYORAI Japan, 18th-19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Seated in dhyanasana on a separately carved double lotus throne with beaded edge supported on an elaborate tiered hexagonal base lacquered in gold, red, and green and carved with lotus, clouds, and key-fret. His hands are held in raigo-in (vitarka mudra). He is wearing a loose-fitting robe draped over both shoulders, opening at the chest, and cascading in voluminous folds, his chest and face lacquered brown over gold, the serene face with downcast eyes below elegantly arched brows, his full lips framed by a finely painted mustache, his hair arranged in tight curls with a domed ushnisha, backed by a large halo carved in openwork with scrolling clouds around a central lotus design, the separately carved halo inset at the back of the lotus throne. HEIGHT 38 cm (the figure) and 90 cm (total) Condition: Very good condition with some wear to gilt and lacquer, expected minor age cracks, minuscule nicks, light scratches, few minor losses. Provenance: Dutch collection. The sculpture represents Amitabha, known in Japanese as Amida Nyorai, or the Buddha of Limitless Light. The downcast gaze directed towards the onlooker below is emblematic of the infinite compassion with which his name is synonymous. Amitabha reigns over the Western Pure Land, a paradise to which anyone is welcomed if they faithfully and sincerely incant his name. This place of salvation became central to the Jodo [lit. Pure Land] sect of Buddhism. Propounded in 1175 by the monk Honen, the accessibility of such tenets of redemption allowed this form of Buddhism to proliferate across the nation and feudal classes of Japan. Often depicted with an elaborate mandala, the boat-shaped halo is said to remind his followers that he serves as a guide for them to cross the ocean of suffering which contaminates the living. Auction comparison: Compare a related gilt-lacquered wood figure of Amida Nyorai, dated to the 18th century, Edo period, 77 cm high overall, at Christie’s, Art d’Asie, 14 December 2016, Paris, lot 87 (sold for 68,500 USD).