Six Figures in a Red Niche Shrine

Viewing notes

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

This polychrome wall-niche set presents six golden standing figures in two tiers. The inner walls of the niche cabinet are a vivid red throughout, setting the gold figures off with unusual brightness. On the upper tier, three figures stand side by side on lotus thrones: at the centre a standing Buddha with blue snail-shell curls, one hand lowered and the other cradling an object; at each side a bodhisattva with crown and beaded ornaments, one holding a lotus stem diagonally, the other forming a seal with the fingertips. On the lower tier, a standing Buddha stands centred within a pointed arched niche frame, holding a small object, flanked on each side by a smaller golden standing figure. Red and gold alone gather the whole set cleanly, its heights and sizes ordered of themselves. Such a set is made to be placed whole against the wall of a shrine or worship area — within a single niche, a complete assembly.