Glazed stoneware. China, Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911)
The Chinese hero Guanyu, later promoted to the deity Guandi, has a long beard, which he is touching. The massive figure is glazed green-grey while the beard is unglazed and reddish. On his robe are wan symbols ("eternal"), cloud patterns and lingzhi (long life). Guandi is holding a ruyi sceptre in a hand hidden in a long sleeve. The floor-length robed deity stands on a rocky base with cloud spirals. A label denoting the below-mentioned collection is on his back.
From the collection of Jürgen L. Fischer, Ascona, Switzerland
Jürgen L. Fischer was one of the major European collectors of Chinese art. The extensive size of the collection largely owes to the family’s fortune from the invention of the world-famous “Uhu Alleskleber ” in 1932 (the first synthetic resin glue world-wide) by grandfather August Fischer. Jürgen L. Fischer, who lived until 2013, was an avid collector of Chinese porcelain in an astonishing wide variety, in every size and from every time period. Jürgen Fischer passed on his comprehensive knowledge in numerous specialist books – among others, his large and very instructive book about the art of Chinese snuffbottles and also an antiquarian’s guide to Chinese art.