Seated on his buffalo. Height 20 cm.
The tips of the horn and fingers with chips. One ear repaired.
From the Collection of Åke Bjurhammar (1932-2017).
Laozi is said to have tired of life in the Zhou court as it grew increasingly morally corrupt. So he left and rode on a water buffalo to the western border of the Chinese empire. Although he was dressed as a farmer, the border official recognised him and asked him to write down his wisdom. According to this legend, what Laozi wrote became the sacred text called the Tao Te Ching.