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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Any Jewelry, post: 360357, member: 2844&quot;]Welcome to the forum, Miles.</p><p>I love your stele, it is beautiful. The style is 5th-6th century, but like you I have been caught in a mental tug-of-war between real or repro. So I decided not to post until I knew more. Frankly I still don&#039;t, but I&#039;ll share my thoughts with you. I hope it will help in the discussion.</p><p><br /></p><p>What concerns me most is the kind of wear of the pigments. It seems strange that no red pigment remains in between the folds of the Buddha&#039;s garment, but there is still red pigment on the outside of the fold, seen in this detail:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]123101[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Another thing is the back, most Chinese sandstone Buddhas of the period have more religious carving or a continuation of the cosmic flames on the back.</p><p><br /></p><p>On the other hand, while the irregular surface seems odd, it could be due to the extrusion of minerals salts through external factors, like being covered with (humid) soil over a long period of time. I&#039;m sure there is a better term for this process, but you probably know what I mean. I have seen it before, but never on Chinese sandstone statues of the period. So I wonder if this is actually due to the conditions it has survived in for centuries, or if this can be faked.</p><p>I can&#039;t see the surface of the back very well, does it have the same extrusions? If it occurred through a natural process, it should.</p><p><br /></p><p>Did you acquire it through a reputable source? And did it come with any provenance?[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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