Large Antique Chinese Polychrome Carved Wood Puppet Heads on a Display Stand

  
A pair of 19th century Chinese polychrome carved wooden puppet heads on a modern wooden stand. The red faced figure with facial hair is believed to be Guandi, the Chinese God of War while the white faced female figure with headdress and red tunic has yet to be identified. The heads are displayed on a custom-made black wooden stand. The heads clearly have significant age, appear to have been overpainted several times and were undoubtedly used in puppet shows in China in 19th and early 20th centuries. They are rare and unusual objects which would make quite a visual statement in any home.

Dimensions : Man - Height 34 x Width 13 x Depth 11 cm. Woman - Height 31 x Width 13 x Depth 12 cm. Stand - Width 40 x Depth 9.5 cm. Height including stand 39 cm. These are large heads as can be seen when compared to a standard bottle of wine (final photograph).

Weight: Man 1026 g ; Woman 857 g ; Base 955 g. Condition : These have a distressed appearance with historic woodworm and chipped paint but these all add, in our opinion, to their overall appeal.