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Source Description
Guanyin, the Buddhist bodhisattva of infinite compassion (Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit), is the most revered enlightened being in East Asia. The bodhisattva perceives all beings in need of help and reveals himself in many forms. Here, his elaborate lotus pedestal rests on the crest of surging waves, identifying him as Guanyin of the South Seas. The Dehua kilns in Fujian province in southern China produced white porcelain figures for both the domestic and export markets. In China, such a figure may have furnished a house altar or a temple.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
127950
label
Bodhisattva Guanyin of the South Sea
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
127950
contentType
object
title
Bodhisattva Guanyin of the South Sea
description
Guanyin, the Buddhist bodhisattva of infinite compassion (Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit), is the most revered enlightened being in East Asia. The bodhisattva perceives all beings in need of help and reveals himself in many forms. Here, his elaborate lotus pedestal rests on the crest of surging waves, identifying him as Guanyin of the South Seas. The Dehua kilns in Fujian province in southern China produced white porcelain figures for both the domestic and export markets. In China, such a figure may have furnished a house altar or a temple.
date
1600s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79908378
genreSpecific
Ceramic
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 45.2 cm (17 13/16 in.)
cul
China, Fujian Province, Ming dynasty (1368-1644) - Qing dynasty (1644-1911)
accession
1950.579
Source extras
tec
Porcelain with white glaze, Dehua ware
tombstone
Bodhisattva Guanyin of the South Sea (南海觀音), 1600s. China, Fujian Province, Ming dynasty (1368-1644) - Qing dynasty (1644-1911). Porcelain with white glaze, Dehua ware; overall: 45.2 cm (17 13/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Norweb Collection, 1950.579
titleInOriginalLanguage
南海觀音
collection
China - Ming Dynasty
didYouKnow
When Marco Polo visited China in the late 1200s, he was so impressed by the Dehua kilns that he included lengthy descriptions of ceramic production in his chronicle of his journey.
citations
citation
Milliken, William M. "Part II. Annual Report Issue for the Year 1950." <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 38, no. 6 (1951): 151-82.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 158
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 868
citation
Lee, Sherman E. <em>A History of Far Eastern Art</em>. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1964.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 420, fig. no. 558
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 267
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 267
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 354
citation
Lion-Goldschmidt, Daisy. <em>Ming Porcelain</em>. London: Thames and Hudson, 1978.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 251, no. 271
citation
Neils, Jenifer. <em>The World of Ceramics: Masterpieces from the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Museum in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1982.
page_number
no. 132
citation
Marquardt, Janet, and Stephen Eskilson. <em>Frames of Reference: Art, History, and the World</em>. McGraw-Hill Humanities Social, 2004.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: fig. 2.29, p. 45
citation
Sun, Di 孙迪, editor. <em>Zhongguo liu shi hai wai Fo jiao zao xiang zong he tu mu </em>[中国流失海外佛教造像总合图目 = Comprehensive Illustrated Catalogue of Chinese Buddhist Statues in Overseas Collections]. Beijing: Wai wen chu ban she, 2005.
page_number
Mentioned: vol. 7, p. 1460
creditline
The Norweb Collection
updatedAt
2026-05-29 06:36:26.177000
sourceId
127950
dept
Chinese Art
coll
China - Ming Dynasty
med
Porcelain with white glaze, Dehua ware
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
15e6da1428aee898