How to identify the authenticity of gilded bronze Buddha statues?

Movable Buddha statues made of copper or bronze and gilded on the surface are commonly known as "gilded bronze Buddha statues". This kind of Buddha statue is for the use of courts and temples; Its appearance began in the Han Dynasty, prevailed in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and lasted until the Ming and Qing Dynasties. By the Republic of China, even in modern Hongkong and Taiwan Province, gilded bronze Buddha statues were still in use. There are several kinds of gilded bronze Buddha statues, such as Sakyamuni, Guanyin, Manjusri, Pu Xian, Heavenly King and Mother Du.

It is difficult to date and identify the gilded bronze Buddha statues, but if scientific research and analysis can be carried out, the authenticity can be identified. Here are some ways:

Determine the age by observing the characteristics of the statue.

Buddha statues in different times have their own characteristics. This is the main basis for our date.

Buddha statues in the Han Dynasty and the Sixteen Kingdoms Period, square face, peaceful face, straight hair, sitting. Most of the buddhas in this period were single and small in scale. For example, in1989,65438+10, a copper cash cow was unearthed in the cliff tomb of Hejiashan, Mianyang, Sichuan. There are five Buddha statues cast on the trunk, each 6.5 cm high, with a horizontal oval lamp behind the head and a bun on the top of the head. His eyes are slightly open, his ears are big, his upper lip has a moustache and he stabbed his shoulder. 1972, a bronze Buddha statue with eaves was unearthed in Yuduyou Township, Jingchuan County, Gansu Province. Its height is 19 cm (including crown and base) and its weight is 0.5 kg. It consists of four detachable parts: canopy, backlight and headlight, Buddha's body placed on the lion lotus seat and four-legged base. Small and exquisite, exquisite workmanship. According to the author's research, it was cast in the Sixteen Kingdoms period from the end of the 4th century to the beginning of the 5th century and spread to Jingchuan. It inherited the characteristics of the Buddha statue on the cash cow in Mianyang.

In the Northern Dynasties (after the Northern Wei Dynasty), the head of the Buddha statue was covered with a bowl, with a long face, a thin face, a high nose and big ears, eyes closed intently, a thin face, a high bun, a spiral shape, a cassock and a bare right shoulder. Some sit in a daze, some sit cross-legged, palms up. The Buddha is either a low-waisted sumeru or a four-legged square seat. Some have lights on their heads, and some have backlights behind them, all of which are sharp and surrounded by flame lines. Another notable feature of the statues in the Northern Wei Dynasty is that there are often 1 2 bodhisattvas on both sides of the main Buddha, mostly standing.

A bronze statue of Sui and Tang Dynasties with a lotus crown, a round face, fat cheeks and a high bun. They wore monks' robes, took off their coats and wore pleated skirts hanging over their feet. There is a double 4-foot-high bed or a single 4-foot-high bed under the seat, and the top or backlight is thick and sharp.

Most of the bronze Buddha statues in the Song Dynasty were bodhisattvas, some with high bun, fat face and angular figure. Some legs are arched and drooping, with the left arm on the arched leg and the right hand hanging flat on the seat. This dress is slightly pleated and hangs behind the legs. Put your left hand on your leg and your right hand on your abdomen. Wearing tassels, sitting on a round seat with a thin waist and two layers of lotus flowers. In Song Dynasty, bronze statues of Pu Xian, Manjusri and Guanyin appeared, sitting on rectangular four-legged seats or on the backs of elephants, lions and nephews. There is a bronze statue of Great Compassion Bodhisattva in Zhengding, Hebei Province. He is more than 22 meters tall, with 42 arms. He is slender and tall, well-dressed, with smooth lines and rich artistic style of the Song Dynasty.

Clam bronze Buddha statues have many thorns, some have sarcoma on their heads, big ears, a fleshy fold on their chin and one to four fleshy folds on their necks. The more folds, the denser. Some people have the word ""cast on their chests. They are dressed in cassock, topless, and sit on a plate with their palms usually facing up. Lotus-shaped or mountain-shaped seats are higher than the previous generation, and the base has no marks. The inscription is still in front of the chair leg. Sitting in a variety of positions, legs falling off a board or an arch. In the Song Dynasty, Kabbah wore a hat in the shape of "". The color is red, and the golden water is yellow and very thick.

Tibetan Buddha and Han Buddha are also different. Tibetan Buddha's chest is high and big, while Han Buddha's chest is flat and small. Most of the turquoise is Tibetan Buddha, and most of the thorns are Han Buddha. This 1 1 Guanyin in Gansu Provincial Museum is a typical gilded bronze statue of Tibetan Buddhism in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Identify true and false by chemical method

Most of the ancient bronze Buddha statues are partially rusted. After dissolving rust with sulfuric acid or hydrochloric acid in the laboratory, whether it is rust or natural rust can be judged according to whether it can decompose copper ions or impurity ions. This work can be done in the laboratory.