Ancient Chinese Northern Wei Period Terracotta Court Lady? 386 AD in MOUNT WAVERLEY, Victoria for sale

Ancient Chinese Northern Wei Period Terracotta Court Lady Statue Figure ? 386-534AD
Height 21.0 cm
Fabulous 1500 years old original Chinese Antiquity ? THIS IS NOT A COPY !!
A charming and high quality example of an Ancient Chinese terracotta figure of an Imperial Court Lady; very probably a palace maid or maiden. She is dressed in the robes and belt of that time with headdress denoting a rank or occupation. This figure dates to the Northern Wei Period (386-534CE) of Chinese history. CE is the same as Anno Domini (AD).
Maids in the imperial palace would have served the emperor?s empresses and concubines after being fully trained in royal court etiquette.
The ?court? of an emperor or monarch is a term used for the extended household and all those who regularly attended on the ruler or central figure. In the largest courts many thousands of individuals comprised the court; many officials or servants were in the permanent employment of the ruler, and others attending in the hope of political or financial gain, or merely for the society and entertainments offered. As well as being the centre of political life, courts were usually the drivers of fashion, and were often where literary, musical and artistic trends first developed.
The maids were basically slaves to the royal family and they provided most of the menial labour within the inner palace and also formed the guard of the Empress and the inner palace.
This genuine original figure is extremely rare and is in great condition for 1500 - 1700 years old.
This piece is intact, unrestored and traces of the original red pigments are clearly still visible.
The female figure is shown wearing fine long robes with thick over-cloak, open at the chest. She wears a conical cap on her head and bears a serene expression. In her right hand she is holding an oval shaped object (with 3 horizontal grooves in it) which does not appear to be part of the robe and so perhaps it could be an implement or a candle for lighting a dark room or tomb in ancient times.
The figure is dressed in thick garments for a cold climate, perhaps indicating that she was a foreigner or from the borders of Imperial China. Her long garments, reaching from her shoulders to the floor, give an added height to her tall figure. This is a typical trait of Northern Wei Period figures.
Provenance: The figure was bought from an Auction house in Florida in February last year.
This piece is as good an example of it's type as any I have seen. And pieces from this era are becoming rarer and rarer to obtain.
Antiquities from the Northern Wei Period are much rarer than those of the Tang Dynasty (618?907CE).
This would make a fabulous addition to any collection.
Pick up from Mount Waverley, VIC 3149 or I can post within Australia or worldwide.