18th Apt Glazed earthenware statuette of the Laughing Buddha

A substantial glazed earthenware statuette depicting Budai—known as the "Laughing Buddha"—shown standing with a broad smile and exposed belly, holding a purse in one hand.

It features a beautiful ochre, cream, and green glaze accented with manganese-violet lines.

Produced by the workshops of Apt or Le Castellet, Provence, 18th century.

In excellent condition.

Dimensions:
Height: 21 cm; Width: 12 cm

Bibliography:
Marc Dumas, *Les Faïences d’Apt et du Castellet*, Aix-en-Provence, Édisud, 1990.

Our assessment:
The piece presented here belongs to a small group of "Laughing Buddha" figures produced by the Apt or Le Castellet workshops during the latter half of the 18th century, created to imitate the famous Chinese ceramics of the Tang period known as "Sancai" (or "three-color" ware).
A Buddha of the same type is illustrated on the back cover of the reference book cited above.