A RARE AND LARGE SANDSTONE STELE DEPICTING BUDDHA SHAKYAMUNI

Description:

China, Ming dynasty, 15th c. or earlier
H. 68 cm
The Buddha is seated in vajrasana on a lotus-base placed on a double plinth incised with and carved with each a scrolling tendril, both hands resting on his lap in dhyanamudra supporting the ratna, wearing monastic garment including an underskirt tied with a ribbon around the waist and a mantle, his face displaying a serene expression with downcast eyes, elongated earlobes, his hairdo continuing into the low ushnisha, flanked by a pair of attendants standing on a lotus base placed on a roaring lion, the hands in anjalimudra and the upper section of the stele carved with a pair of dragons chasing the flaming pearl.
From the collection of Gerd-Wolfgang Essen (1930-2007), assembled between the 1950s and 1980s, bought from Hauswedell, Hamburg, 15.11.1968, lot 13
Very minor damages due to age, few fine cracks