IMPORTANTE ET RARE STATUE DE DIVINITÉ DAOISTE EN BOISSong (960-1279)AN IMPORTANT AND RARE LARGE WOOD FIGURE OF A DAOIST DEITYSong (960-1279)Seated facing forward, with her head slightly leaning to the left side, her feet firmly on the ground, hands clasped but hidden in the long sleeves of her robe, wearing a tunic with a stiff inner collar under a feather-bordered short cape, her layered robe falling in ample folds over her arms and cascading over her legs and feet, revealing the tips of her pointed shoes, tied around the chest with a belt and around her upper arms with wide bejewelled armbands, a necklace around her neck, the full oval face with a small cusped mouth and nose, with small slanted eyes below arched brows, framed by large pendulous earlobes, her hair neatly braided and drawn up into a tall chignon framed by an elaborate diadem/headdress consisting of rows of overlapping feathers or leaves, the back of the figure with a large rectangular opening, extensive traces of red, green, white and gold pigments, wood stand.111cm (43 3/4in) high. (2).Provenance: 宋 木雕彩繪道教神仙坐像Provenance:Property of a distinguished German private collector, acquired in Berlin in the 1950s, thence in the family by descentThe result of Ciram Radiocarbon Dating test no. 0423-OA-416R (P1 and P2) (4 May 2023) is consistent with the dating of this lot.來源:德國私人收藏，1950年代於柏林獲得，並由後人保存迄今法國Ciram實驗室碳-14結果，測試編號0423-OA-416R(樣本P1和P2，2023年5月4日）顯示本拍品年份斷代相符This charming figure is as intriguing as it is rare. It was acquired in Berlin in the 1950s and was reputedly dated to the Liao dynasty (901-1125). The results of a recent carbon-14 test have secured a more firm dating to the 11th/early 12th century. Conforming with the high-fashion style popular during the Liao and Song dynasties, the lady is dressed wearing the sumptuous trappings of a gentle woman. Her robe is ample and colourful, the many layers of her dress, tunic and shawl generously draped across her shoulders, arms, and legs, enveloping the body, and gathering around her feet. The outer garment shows traces of painted flower sprays, her tunic and collar a vibrant red colour, the robe over her legs a muted green. Representations of similarly clad elegant ladies feature prominently in murals adorning the walls of important tombs and temples of the Five Dynasties (907-960), Liao (907-1125) and Song (960-1125) periods.pare, for example, the gro of ladies wearing the same style of collared tunic over long robes tied with colourful sashes on the sides, discovered on the walls of a Liao tomb in Baoshan, Inner Mongolia, illustrated in Wu Hong and Lin Qingquan, Baoshan Liao mu: cailiao yu keshi, Beijing, 2013, p.196, figs.59-61. Similarly, the largest tomb of the Zhang familypound unearthed in Baisha, Henan, illustrates the ladies of the house engaged in various activities, dressed in colourful robes that resemble that of the current seated figure, see Su Bai, Baisha Song mu, Beij