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Luohan, Royal Ontario Museum


This luohan, the Chinese term for arhat, is a Buddhist monk. It is housed in the Bishop White Gallery of Chinese Temple Art at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Ontario. The piece was acquired by three individuals: Charles Currelly, George Crofts, and Mrs. H.D. Warren Curated in 1914, it was one of the first artifacts to be included in the museum's vast collection of Chinese art.

The statue is one of eight that were found in 1912 by German sinologist Friedrich Perzynski inside a cave located near Yixuan, Hebei in northwestern China. However, only seven are found in museums around the world, as it is believed that the eighth statue was destroyed in Berlin during World War II. Currently, other luohans from this collection can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, British Museum in London, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Philadelphia.

Although the piece is dated back to the Liao Dynasty (916-1125 CE), its tri-colour glaze of green, amber, and cream, is reminiscent of elements from Tang Dynasty (618-907) sculptures.