A Fan of Countless Arms

Viewing notes

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

This golden-toned group presents a many-armed bodhisattva seated at the centre of a great fan of arms. Crowned and serene, the figure holds one pair of hands together at the chest while another pair rises overhead, lifting an offering. Behind, dozens of arms open layer upon layer into an enormous semicircular fan, each small hand holding an implement or forming a seal, the spaces between them filled with minute hand motifs, like light radiating outward. Below the seat, layered drapery falls around a beast-head ring at the centre, and two dragons wind through waves and clouds on either side; a small attendant stands at each edge of the fan, palms joined. The whole group rests on a long, dark-toned plinth. Grand in scale yet perfectly ordered — a centrepiece for the main position of a shrine, or the single commanding work of a large space.