A CHINESE BISCUIT PORCELAIN BUST OF MAO ZEDONG, circa 1966-7, inscribed 'Long Live Chairman Mao' in cursive script.

18cm high

Notes: A hoard of four hundred bisque porcelain busts of Chairman Mao were discovered on the Sino-Tibetan border in an area regarded as the inspiration for Shangri-La.

Originally intended for distribution throughout the South Eastern corner of Tibet, they were packed into baskets and transported by horse to Zhong Dian on the Yunnan Tibet border. The baskets were stored awaiting distribution in a police station but never made it any further, languishing forgotted until 1998 when the building was destroyed by an earthquake. The busts miraculously survived, protected by their transit baskets and straw wadding.

The design of the bust was officially sanctioned, being the only sculptural image of Mao made for distribution to official buildings in China. The majority of the hoard was bought by the late Peter Wain, before being shipped to the UK.

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