Carved Guanyin on Waves with Dragon & Lotus, One-Piece Sculpture

A standing figure of Guanyin, Bodhisattva of Compassion, carved from a single solid block of wood with the urna dot at the brow, a downcast meditative gaze, and a high chignon crowned with a seated Buddha figure. The robe falls in deep, wind-caught folds against a broad circular halo, and a necklace of beaded strands is picked out in fine relief. She holds a lotus bloom in her draped hands and stands atop churning waves where a dragon rises from the froth — one hand lifted in a gesture of blessing, a long-tailed bird and cloud scrolls filling the flanking spray beside a full lotus pod on the stalk.

The iconography places this among the "Guanyin of the Southern Sea" compositions, where the bodhisattva commands the ocean and its dragon. The carver worked the entire scene — figure, halo, dragon, waves, and foliage — from one piece. Chinese camphor (Zhang mu), has been a preferred medium for large devotional carvings in southern Chinese workshops for centuries. The halo's reverse shows the natural annular figure and open grain unobscured by finish. Unmarked.

CONDITION

Good. Fingers are chipped and partially absent on the raised hand; chipping is present along the base at the wave edges, with one small loss at the lower right wave curl confirmed in close examination. Past repairs and restoration are present. Surface shows age-appropriate darkening in the recessed carved areas and handling wear throughout.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall: 19 1/4" H × 7 1/4" W × 4" D
• Weight: 4 lb 13 oz
• Construction: Carved from one solid piece of wood
• Wood Species: Consistent with camphor (Zhang mu)
• Unmarked
• Campbell's Soup Can (4" H) Shown for Scale — Not Included