Description
Pair of Foo lions, Qing dynasty. China, 19th century. Hand-polychromed porcelain. Measurements: 43 x 14 x 21 cm . Pair of Foo lions from the Qing dynasty. China, 19th century, in hand-polychromed porcelain in ochre tones, with green bases. Foo lions, also known as Buddha lions or Chinese lions (and erroneously also known as Foo dogs, since they are not canids), and sometimes also called shishi (literally, 'stone lion'), are powerful mythical animals that have their origins in the Buddhist tradition and are consequently widespread in Southeast Asia, China, Japan, Tibet, Korea and Thailand. Insofar as the Chinese use the term 'Foo' to refer to Buddha, one can also speak of 'Buddha lions'.1 In fact, they are often found on the thresholds of Buddhist temples, palaces and imperial tombs, in all buildings from the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) until the end of the empire (1911),
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Pair of Foo lions, Qing dynasty. China, 19th century. Hand-polychromed porcelain. Measurements: 43 x 14 x 21 cm . Pair of Foo lions from the Qing dynasty. China, 19th century, in hand-polychromed porcelain in ochre tones, with green bases. Foo lions, also known as Buddha lions or Chinese lions (and erroneously also known as Foo dogs, since they are not canids), and sometimes also called shishi (literally, 'stone lion'), are powerful mythical animals that have their origins in the Buddhist tradition and are consequently widespread in Southeast Asia, China, Japan, Tibet, Korea and Thailand. Insofar as the Chinese use the term 'Foo' to refer to Buddha, one can also speak of 'Buddha lions'.1 In fact, they are often found on the thresholds of Buddhist temples, palaces and imperial tombs, in all buildings from the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) until the end of the empire (1911),
