This meditating Buddha plate from early to mid 19 c is of granite stone depicts a Buddha in meditating pose. His hand is in the Abhaya Mudra, Fearlessness Gesture. Also called Renunciation Gesture. , his legs crossed, in the famous lotus position, called Padmasana. The circle behind his head is the sign of sun, with the flames symbolizes the eternal light. Two Luohan figures are carved just below the base, they serve as guardians to the Buddha and in this statue, they are seen supporting the Buddha’s seat. What’s especially unusual about this statue is the eternal flames were elevated from the plate, making it a small covering to the Buddha, which sits just below the flames. This statue has survived several anti Buddhism movements, as late as the mid 70s due to Cultural Revolution, and has several minor man made slashes on the back of the stone plate to show for it. The simplistic carving style of Luahan is very evident in statues dating prior to mid Qing (mid 19 c) style. We located this statue near Xi’An’s antique market, after seeing eerie similarities between this statue and those found in the Big and Small Goose Pagoda temples and the stone plate temple in Xi’An, which to this date exhibits some of the examples of stone plate Buddhist carvings. Size: 12” by 5” by 26”. Weight: 60 lbs.