57. AN ORMOLU STATUETTE OF A MANJUSHRI Ming dynasty (1368-1644), 16th century A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF MANJUSHRI Ming Dynasty, 16th century Cast in its two-armed form, seated in dhyanasana on a double-lotus pedestal, the right arm held in vitarka mudra, the left hand lowered in the gesture of contemplation, holding two stalks of uptala lotuses rising up from the elbows along the arms to the shoulders, each supporting a khadga and prajnaparamita, wearing a fine diaphanous dhoti falling in elegant folds around his legs, a thin sash wrapped around shoulders and arms, the chest and the waist adorned with bejewelled necklaces, the rounded face with a serene and benevolent expression, with almond-shaped eyes and a gentle smile, his pendulous earlobes suspending large, the hair in a high chignon hidden behind a five-leaf diadem. 33cm (13in) high. PROPERTY FROM AN ITALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTION 意大利私人珍藏 明 十六世紀 鎏金銅文殊菩薩坐像 The current figure is closely related to a gilt-bronze figure of Avalokitesvara bearing a Zhengtong reign mark, in the Palace Museum Collection, Beijing, dated to 1441, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Statues of Tibet, Hong Kong, 2008, p.232, pl.221. Compare also another rare example originally in the collection of Joseph Morak, dated 1447, sold in Sotheby's Hong Kong, 7 October 2015, lot 3113.