A HARDWOOD FIGURE OF VIJRAPUTRA, LATE MING DYNASTY TO EARLY QING DYNASTYChina, 17th to early 18th century. Finely carved, seated with his right hand resting on his raised knee, the left hand supported by an armrest above a lion head issuing a three-clawed foot, dressed in loose-fitting robes opening at the chest, his balding head detailed with furrowed brows above a pointed nose and delicately curled facial hair.Inscriptions: To the base, ‘Song Ji Zao’.Provenance: From the collection of Dr. Aurel Gonda, acquired in Shanghai circa 1937-1947, and thence by descent to the present owner. Dr. Aurel Gonda (1885-1964) was an Austro-Hungarian physician who served as a councilman and health official in Vienna. A street in Inzersdorf, in the 23rd district of Vienna, is named after him. He was the brother of architect Charles Henry Gonda, who was active in Shanghai between the 1920s and 1940s. As C. H. Gonda rose to be a renowned architect, he ran in the same circles as foreign elites, including Shanghai's top oligarch Victor Sassoon. In 1938, Aurel Gonda and his family escaped fascist Vienna and joined C. H. Gonda in Shanghai. After themunist victory in China in 1949, the brothers and their families left for the US and settled in Lakewood, New Jersey.Condition: Very good condition with some old wear, few minuscule chips to the edge of the robe, expected minor age cracks, fine warm patina.Weight: 410 gDimensions: Height 15.4 cmExpert’s note: The present figure most likely depicts the eighth luohan Vijraputra, known in China as Xiaoshi Luohan (Laughing Lion Luohan), as evidenced by the lion head below the armrest. Vijraputra ismonly depicted with a lion.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2 May 2014, lot 21Price: HKD 275,000 or approx.EUR 41,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A Carved Wood Seated Luohan Qing Dynasty, 18th / 19th CenturyAuction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2 May 2005, lot 662Estimate: HKD 400,000 or approx.EUR 76,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A finely carved boxwood figure of a luohan, Qing dynasty, 18th century明末清初硬木羅漢坐像中國，十七世紀末至十八世紀初。羅漢坐像，右手托膝，左手靠在獅子頭上，身著寬大開襟長袍，禿頂，眉頭微皺，鼻子高挺，頭髮捲曲。款識: 松記造。