There is graceful nourishment, an overflowing abundance that is embodied in this antique Chinese marble statue of Quan Yin. In China, the bodhisattva Quan Yin, the embodiment of Avolokiteshvara is widely known as the Goddess of Mercy: “She who answers the cries of the world”.
Here she is shown holding a lotus waiting to bloom. She is modestly, indeed demurely dressed, her body swathed in fluidly draped cloth rendered from marble. Her face communicates the beatific demeanor that is characteristic of this deity: the eyes are gracefully closed in contemplation, the lips full, and the face wide. The gentle tilt of her head and the subtle curves in her waist breathes life into this stature. This is an excellent representation from the period and a bountiful representation of the deity. (SD)