‘Laughing Buddha’ with Child, Resin Statuette for Fertility and Harmony

The ‘Laughing Buddha’ was a jolly, humorous, eccentric Chan Buddhist monk in the 10th century, renowned for wandering aimlessly with a sack of either his few personal belongings or candies for children.  According to Wikipedia, his name was Qieci, but he is often referred to as Budai (which literally means cloth sack), Hotei or Hotai. According to the legend, when he died, he claimed to be an incarnation of the future Buddha.
 
He is usually pictured overweight, bald, in a simple robe, laughing, with a huge belly, and his sack. The laughter shows one can be happy without many worldly things and the belly represents wealth and prosperity (as if these two concepts are not contradictory, if we may editorialize). 
 
In this depiction, it appears he is sitting on his sack while a child tells him a funny story. When pictured with children, they say he represents fertility and family harmony.
 
We believe our grandmother inherited this piece from the Burr sisters who visited China in the 1920s and 1930s. We have confirmed it is not made of ivory. We believe it is resin, but it could be made by other bone. It is in very good vintage condition, no visible cracks or damage.
 
H 1 1/2” x L 1 5/8” x D 1 1/4”
 
Disclaimer: We have tried to make sure colors shown in photos are representative of the real colors of each item. We have tried to identify all imperfections in descriptions, but we may have missed some. If you are unhappy with your purchase, let us know.