19th Century Kwan Yin Bodhisattva Polychrome Gilt Wooden Statue

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Antique Chinese 19th century or older hand carved gilt wood Kwan Yin Bodhisattva sitting Buddha statue. She has a polychrome … Read more Antique Chinese 19th century or older hand carved gilt wood Kwan Yin Bodhisattva sitting Buddha statue. She has a polychrome wood finish with colors of gray blue on the crown and gilt finish and hints of red covering most of her body. She is one of our smaller sitting Buddhas and is relatively light in weight. Although she is missing a hand, she is still beautiful and would look fabulous sitting on an altar table, console or pedestal in a Hollywood Regency style room. These types of statement pieces are great to use in boutique hotels and restaurants.

One of the deities most frequently seen on altars in China’s temples is Kwan Yin (also spelled Guan Yin, Kuanyin). In Sanskrit, her name is Padma-pâni, or "Born of the Lotus." Quan Yin, alone among Buddhist gods, is loved rather than feared and is the model of Chinese beauty. Regarded by the Chinese as the goddess of mercy, she was originally male until the early part of the 12th century and has evolved since that time from her prototype, Avalokiteshvara, "the merciful lord of utter enlightenment," an Indian bodhisattva who chose to remain on earth to bring relief to the suffering rather than enjoy for himself the ecstasies of Nirvana. Guan Yin (Guanyin, Guan Yin, Kwan Yin or Kuan Yin). See less