A SILVER-INLAID BRONZE FIGURE OF GUANYIN, SHISOU MARK, CHINA, 19TH CENTURY
Finely cast, seated in rajalilasana with her head slightly lowered and her hands folded on top of her raised knee, the right holding a scroll, clad in long flowing robes falling into voluminous folds and neatly decorated with silver wire inlay. Her serene face with heavy-lidded eyes, a raised circular urna, and slightly pursed lips. Her finely incised hair piled up into a high topknot.

The base inlaid in silver wire with a two-character Shisou mark.


Provenance:
Collection of Sigurd Yngve Euren, and thence by descent. Bukowskis Auktioner, 3 June 2019, lot 651. A private collection in Finland, acquired from the above. The catalog entry from Bukowski, dated 5 June 2019, confirms the dating above. Sigurd Yngve Euren (1890-1990) was a Swedish engineer, who initially visited China in 1917 in order to set up a net of radio masts. After this, Euren began constructing bridges primarily along in the Yangtze River and its many offshoots. After a couple of years, he moved to Shanghai and set up his own tea export company which was located along the Bund (Waitan). After some time, Euren and his family moved back to Sweden, bringing a large collection of Chinese art with them.

Condition:
Good condition with expected old wear, minuscule nicks and minor casting flaws. Light surface scratches to the base. Some areas with faint loss of patina.

Weight: 2,478 g
Dimensions: Height 21.4 cm


Little is known about the historic figure Shisou.
The earliest reference in the Zhongguo meishujia renming cidian ('Dictionary of Chinese Artists') comes from the Luochuang xiaodu and is presumably from the same source as published in Zhongguo yishujia zhenglue ('Brief Introduction of Chinese Artists). Shisou is listed there only as a late Ming dynasty monk without any further biographical information. A number of vessels and sculptures from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century bear his name, sometimes in combination with a hall name, Jinyu tang (‘Hall of Prosperity’).


Auction result comparison:

Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams London, 7 November 2019, lot 13
Price: GBP 12,562 or approx.
EUR 19,500
converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A silver-wire-inlaid bronze figure of Guanyin, inlaid Shisou two-character mark, Qing dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of casting and modeling. Note the size (29.3 cm high).




十九世紀銅錯銀觀音，石叟款

鑄工精美，觀音成轉輪王坐姿，頭微低，雙手交疊於膝上，右手持書卷，身著飄逸袈裟，上鑲有銀線。面容平靜，雙眼微閉，嘴唇微抿，長髮盤成高髻。底座鑲銀線，“石叟”款。


來源：
Sigurd Yngve Euren 收藏，傳承至今；Bukowskis Auktioner拍賣，2019 年 6 月 3 日，拍品 651；芬蘭私人收藏。，購自上述拍賣行。Bukowski 的拍賣目錄日期為 2019 年 6 月 5 日，證實了上述日期。 Sigurd Yngve Euren（1890-1990）是一位瑞典工程師，他於 1917 年首次訪問中國，目的是建立無線電網。此後，Euren開始沿著長江及其許多支流修建橋樑。 幾年後，他搬到了上海，並在外灘成立了自己的茶葉出口公司。不久之後，Euren和他的家人帶著大量的中國藝術品搬回了瑞典。

品相：
狀況良好，有磨損、微小刻痕和輕微鑄造缺陷。底座表面有輕微劃痕。一些區域有輕微的包漿損失。

重量：2,478 克
尺寸：高21.4 厘米


拍賣結果比較：

形制：相近
拍賣：倫敦邦翰斯，2019年11月7日，lot 13
價格：GBP 12,562（相當於今日
EUR 19,500
）
描述：清銅嵌銀觀音坐像，嵌銀絲「石叟」款
專家評論：比較非常相近的鑄造風格和模型。請注意尺寸(高29.3 厘米)。