Chinese Bonze on Pedestal
Chinese Bonze on Pedestal
Item
00.854
Designer
Category
Series
Design
Variation
Version II: Green Pillow
Material
Hand-Painted Porcelain
The central figure in Franz Anton Bustelli’s Chinese cycle is this intricately painted idol, also called Bonze. Surrounded by gifts of flowers, the Chinese boy is enthroned on his jade-green cushion, his hands buried deep in the sleeves, decorated with a floral pattern, of his kimono. He benevolently looks down with a smile at the illustrious society gathered at his feet, which truly honours him. It is perhaps a symbol of the then Prince Elector Max III Joseph? After all, Bustelli probably designed the Temple group as table decorations for the royal Pagodenburg pavilion in the Nymphenburg Palace gardens.