Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin)

Object Details

• Description

  Buddhist tablet showing three figures in high relief in sunken panel.

  Color, dark gray slatey gray with brown discoloration.

• Provenance

  Abel William Bahr [1877-1959] or Peter J. Bahr [died circa 1928] [1]

  To 1912

  N.E. Montross (1849-1932), New York, NY, to 1912 [2]

  From 1912 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from N.E. Montross in 1912 [3]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [4]

  Notes:

  [1] See Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record. Peter J. Bahr (died circa 1928) and Abel William Bahr (1877-1959) were brothers born in Shanghai. Peter remained in Shanghai. Abel left Shanghai in 1910, after which he lived, at various points in time, in London, Montreal, and Ridgefield, Connecticut. He established a gallery in New York City in 1920.

  [2] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 377, p. 119, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

  [3] See note 2.

  [4] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Abel William Bahr (1877-1959)

  Peter Johannes Bahr (1882-1929)

  N.E. Montross (1849-1932) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Sculpture

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1800s, 1910s

• Name

  Bahr, Peter Johannes, Freer, Charles Lang, Montross, N. E., Bahr, Abel William

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Charles Lang Freer collection, Art, Inscriptions, Chinese Art, Forgery, Stone, Bodhisattva, Lettering, Guanyin

• Culture

  Buddhists, Chinese

• Object Type

  Sculpture