This magnificent late Qing era fruit wood carving depicts Kuan Yin, the Chinese Bodhisattva Avolokiteshvara seated in royal ease; possibly inspired by the Hua-yen-ching Sutra (The Flower Ornament Scripture), which chronicles the travels of the pilgrim Sudhana, who after a long search finds Kuan yin sitting atop a magnificent diamond boulder, where he received the instruction from the Bodhisattva.
As depicting here, Kuan Yin is artfully rendered in a classic Tang style. She wears a long robe in swirls and folds, and is casually seated in her twirling Potalaka rock enclave, right arm gracefully resting above the bent knee, and to her left a vase of the healing nectar of amrita, with her left feet suspending above a lotus seed pod, complimented by a wavy leaf and a half opened lotus flower that rise above the stormy sea, which transformed into two natural spirals that formed a stand at the base. This high hand polished statue aged beautifully and is in excellent condition.