White Porcelain Avalokitesvara Statue by the Dehua Kiln

This white porcelain Avalokitesvara statue was produced in the Dehua Kiln during the Ming Dynasty. It boasts fine, white, and bright glaze. The Avalokitesvara has a high bun and wears a hood, with her eyes slightly closed. She seems to be smiling, demonstrating a dignified, amicable demeanor.

She is dressed in a high-waisted long skirt, and her robe seems light and fluttering. The pearl jewel she wears on the chest is lustrous, and her hands are hidden in the sleeves. She stands barefoot above the waves.

On the back of the statue is the mark of He Chaozong, the most famous porcelain craftsman at the Dehua Kiln during the late Ming Dynasty.

The site of the Dehua Kiln is in Dehua County, southeast China's Fujian Province today. Since the Ming Dynasty, the kiln had been committed to producing white porcelain, especially porcelain figurines such as Bodhidharma and Avalokitesvara.

White porcelain from the Dehua Kiln features high-quality materials and lustrous glaze as bright and warm as jade, with ivory yellowish color brimming in white. It has been well-known globally since ancient times, earning the reputation "Blanc de Chine", or "white from China". This white porcelain Avalokitesvara statue from the Dehua Kiln is a masterpiece of Chinese white porcelain.

德化窯白瓷觀音像

這件德化窯白瓷觀音像燒造于明代，材質堅細潔白，釉色瑩亮溫潤。觀音發髻高盤，頭戴兜帽，雙目微閉，似乎面帶笑意，神態端莊慈祥。身著高腰長裙，法衣輕盈飄動，胸前珠飾光潤，雙手藏在袖子里，光腳站在海浪之上。觀音像背后有明代后期最為著名的德化窯瓷工何朝宗的戳記。

德化窯址在今福建省德化縣，自明代起主燒白瓷，以達摩、觀音等人物像最為突出。德化窯瓷質優異，胎釉渾然一體，色澤光潤明亮如脂似玉，潔白中閃現牙黃，自古享譽國內外，稱為“中國白”。這件德化窯白瓷觀音像便是中國白瓷的典型代表。