Seated with the Tablet

Viewing notes

A viewer's written impression — not a buyer review or first-hand record

This polychrome figure sits upright and composed on a deep-red armchair whose armrest ends are each crowned with a golden beast head. A tall golden crown rises in ornamented tiers above a serene, fine-featured face with lowered eyes. Both hands hold a golden tablet upright before the chest; the wide-sleeved robe is orange-yellow, woven all over with dragons, phoenixes and clouds, its collar and cuffs edged in gold thread. A red knotted sash and beaded strands hang before the knees, and the hem opens into a row of red, blue and green zigzag mountain patterns above a pair of golden pointed shoes. Rich in colour yet never disorderly, and dignified in bearing, it belongs at the principal seat of a hall for veneration, or as a striking collected piece in a traditional interior.