AN EXCEPTIONALLY LARGE AND MASSIVE CAST-BRONZE AND COPPER-REPOUSSE STATUE OF BUDAI, QING DYNASTYChina, 1644-1912. The gilt-lacquered laughing Buddha is seated in rajalalitasana on his sack, which is hidden under his long flowing robe, atop a double lotus base, his left hand resting on his knee with the palm facing upwards, his right resting on the other knee, wearing a loose-fitting monastic robe hanging off the shoulders and opening at the chest.Provenance: Italian private estate. Austrian private collector, acquired from the above.Condition: Extensive wear, some losses, dents, nicks, and casting flaws. The statue has suffered significant structural damage, mostly to the copper-repousse base, which has literally been torn to pieces, resulting in modern repair work to most of the joints, only visible from the inside. Because of these repairs, the lacquer coating has also suffered in areas, but also due to extensive weathering, leading to the application of several layers of lacquer and gilt over the decades and possibly even centuries. A public temple statue such as the present lot, and particularly one depicting the extremely popular Budai, will inevitably be exposed to extensive touching. As a result, the lacquer gilding of an authentic piece will have been renewed many, many times. The present statue was at least once removed by force from its original location, causing the present structural damages, and soldered back together much later, when it entered the trade some time ago.Weight: ca. 31 kgDimensions: Height 79.5 cmThe cheerful face with gently arched eyebrows above heavy-lidded eyes with incised pupils, centered by an urna, a broad nose, and a wide-open mouth as the Happy Buddha lets out a joyous laugh, flanked by elongated pendulous earlobes.Budai is a popular figure in Qing art, representative of contentment and abundance. He is usually portrayed as laughing, hence the title 'Laughing Buddha'. The current figure of Budai is an exceptionally large example and must therefore be considered extremely rare.The base and parts of the body are made from solid copper-alloy and worked in fine repousse, while the upper sections are made from cast bronze.Auction result comparison: A related but smaller gilt bronze Budai dated to the Ming dynasty was sold in these rooms in Fine Chinese Art, Buddhism and Hinduism on 27 September 2019, lot 50, sold for EUR 74,820.清代布袋和尚銅像中國,1644-1912年。鎏金漆銅笑佛呈休閑坐坐在麻袋上,而麻袋則藏在長袍下,雙層蓮花座。左手放在膝蓋上,手掌朝上,右手放在另一邊的膝蓋上,穿著一件寬鬆的袈裟,披在肩膀上,敞胸露腹。來源:意大利私人遺產。奧地利私人收藏,購於上述遺產。 品相:大量磨損,一些損失,凹痕,缺口和鑄造缺陷。該雕像曾受過重大的結構性損壞,主要是銅錘揲的底座,實際上已成碎片,因此有大量的現代維修,這些部分只能從內部看到,也因此漆層在某些地區受到破壞。因爲廣汎的風化,所以過去的幾十年甚至幾百年進行過多次上漆和鎏金。像現在這樣的公共寺廟雕像,尤其是深受歡迎的布袋和尚,就不可避免地會受到觸摸。原始漆層和鎏金被更新很多次。這座雕像至少一次被用力從其原始位置移開,造成了目前的結構性損壞,並在不久前因爲銷售又被重新焊接在一起。 重量:約31 公斤 尺寸:高79.5 厘米 底座和像身部份由銅合金製成,並使用精美錘揲工藝,而上部則是銅鑄而成。 拍賣結果比較:一件相近但更小的明代鎏金銅布袋曾在本拍賣行Fine Chinese Art, Buddhism and Hinduism拍場2019年9月27日 lot 50, 售價EUR 74,820.