A LARGE SILVER-WIRE-INLAID BRONZE FIGURE OF GUANYIN Shisou silver-inlaid mark, 19th CenturyA LARGE SILVER-WIRE-INLAID BRONZE FIGURE OF GUANYINShisou silver-inlaid mark, 19th CenturyThe Goddess of Mercy finely cast standing, gently swaying to her right, the face with serene expression defined by downcast eyes flanked by pendulous ears, holding a scroll in her left hand, wearing a silver beaded necklace and layered robes inlaid with silver wire with scrolling designs and clouds draping elegantly around the body and flaring at the hems, the hair drawn up into a topknot beneath her veil, wood stand. 48cm (19in) high.十九世紀 銅嵌銀絲觀音立像「石叟」款Provenance: an Italian private collection來源：意大利私人收藏The present bronze figure displays a great attention to detail and sculptural qualities. The Chinese mother goddess radiating grace and poise expresses much refinement in her elegant hands with a fine articulation in the wrist and fingers. The movement of her robes is enhanced by the naturalistically rendered folding and the fine silver-inlaid decorations along the hems. According to the 'Lotus Sutra', Guanyin could take the form of any type of God, Buddha, King and Heavenly Guardian, and could appear in both male and female form, showing the Bodhisattva's limitless transcendence beyond gender, in order to teach the Dharma (teachings of the Buddha) to sentient beings. During the Ming dynasty, it was common belief that, in accordance with descriptions in the 'Avalokiteshvara' chapter of the 'Lotus Sutra' and 'The 25 Great Ones' chapter of the 'Surangama Sutra', Guanyin could transform at will and appear in more than thirty human forms to expound Buddhist teaching. Compare with a related silver-inlaid bronze figure of Guanyin, 16th/17th century, which was sold at Bonhams Hong Kong, 27 May 2021, lot 27; and see also a related bronze figure of Guanyin, 19th century, which was sold at Christie's New York, 21 March 2014, lot 2057.public_sentiment_keywords: Bronze + han ** Guanyin ** Bronze + Han ** Bronze + Gu ** bronze ** bronze + Gu ** Bronzeis_parse: 20230413image: yuzhan_bonhams_item/51930834.jpgsold_price_type: £