Triptych Wood Statuettes – Guanyin, Guan Yu & Skanda

Description

This triptych of wood statuettes presents three figures whose authority within Chinese tradition has accumulated across more than a thousand years. Pine, light in the hand, is cut with enough precision that the faces hold expression across their small scale.

Guanyin, Guan Yu, and Skanda have been paired in Chinese Buddhist and Taoist domestic shrines for centuries, each figure representing a distinct register of protection. Guanyin, the Bodhisattva of compassion, entered Chinese iconography from the Indian Avalokiteshvara tradition during the Tang Dynasty. Guan Yu, a Han Dynasty general deified during the Song period, serves as guardian of commerce and civil order. Skanda, known in Chinese as Wei Tuo, guards the transmission of Buddhist teaching. Together they form a complete household triad.

Each statuette is carved from natural pine, the three figures forming a triptych of matched height at approximately 15 centimetres per piece. The carving is hand-finished at the face, hands, and robes, then painted in mineral pigments sealed under clear lacquer. Bases are flat-cut for direct shelf or altar placement without a stand. Pine was chosen for this work: light enough for a thin-bladed tool to define facial detail, dense enough to hold the painted surface over decades. The set arrives in a fitted presentation box.

Triptych of hand-carved natural pine wood statuettes: Guanyin, Guan Yu, and Skanda. Mineral pigment paint, clear lacquer seal. Height approximately 15 cm per figure, set of three. Bases flat-cut. Origin: Chinese Buddhist and Taoist artisan tradition. Includes fitted presentation box. Category: Asian statuettes, Chinese figures.

Three figures, one complete tradition. Each is carved and painted by hand. The triptych holds its authority at any scale.