Chinese Monastery Stamp or Seal Depicting Buddhai

The carving here is rough and dramatic, as though the scene were caught mid-motion.

This monastery stamp or seal depicting a buddha is from China, and dates to the early 20th century. It is soapstone. Soapstone is a soft stone made largely of talc, which makes it easy to carve and has made it a traditional material for Chinese seals. Up close, a rectangular block shows a loosely cut, scratchy relief of a figure with a large rounded body beside smaller bundled shapes. Vertical hatching fills the background, and the reddish-orange border is chipped and worn. It is 1.5 inches wide, 1.13 deep and 2.38 high.

Rough at the edges, all the more lively for it.