A LARGE AND IMPRESSIVE GILT-LACQUER FIGURE OF... Lot n° 9

A LARGE AND IMPRESSIVE GILT-LACQUER FIGURE OF AMIDA NYORAI, DATED 1693 Japan, dated 1693 Of yosegi (jointed) construction, standing on a separately carved lotus dais fitted to an elaborately carved hexagonal-stepped base. Buddha’s hands are held in raigou-in mudra, welcoming the dead into his Pure Land. His serene face with heavy-lidded downcast eyes below gently arched eyebrows centered by a glass or rock crystal byakugo (urna), a broad nose, full lips, and a thin-painted mustache, flanked by long pendulous pierced earlobes. His robes fall in elegant folds and are finely decorated with geometric patterns and floral blossoms. The plinth he stands on incorporates writhing dragons, ho-o birds, elaborate floral and geometric designs, with the base being supported by painted Nio guardians and shishi. The hollow interior of the base is inscribed Genroku roku mizunoto-tori nen, nigatsu juhachi nichi, Baihodai [On the 18th day of the second month of the Genroku 6th year (corresponding to 1693), in the year of mizunoto-tori, representing Baiho]. HEIGHT 49 cm (the figure) cm, 94.3 cm (total) Condition: Wear, minor age cracks, small losses, and old repairs. Overall presenting very well. The Byakugo, a white swirl of fine hair on the forehead of the Buddha, is represented here by a neatly inlaid rock crystal . It is also sometimes called the third eye and allows Amida to see past the mundane and into the divine world. The ushnisha above is embedded in finely sculpted, curly hair and another neatly inlaid in rock crystal. The sculpture represents Amitabha, known in Japanese as Amida Nyorai, or the Buddha of Limitless Light. 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 with a closely related statue of Amida of similar size at Christie's, Japanese Art and Design, 16 November 2000, London, lot 191 (sold for 35,200 GBP).