She is riding the dragon, not standing on it.
The Lady Buddha (Guan Yin) Riding a Dragon Diamond Pendant is a lotus-bud tablet — a pointed arch at the top that swells out into two soft lobes below. Guan Yin sits side-saddle at the centre in flowing robes, one hand lowered, the other across her body. Beneath her the dragon turns through cloud scrolls: the head and whiskered jaw come forward at the lower left, the body loops behind her, and the finned tail sweeps up the right-hand side and ends in a curl of flame.
Behind her head is a double ring and a pierced flame mandorla. The arch is filled with cut-through leaf-and-flame scrollwork that reads as light around her, and the two polished rings of the halo sit against it like a target. It is the one place on the piece where the metal is left bright.
Everything sculpted is finished to a fine frosted matte. The robes, the clouds, the dragon's scales and mane and the folds of her sleeves are all sandblasted; the frame, the halo rings and the bezel are polished. That split is what lets this much detail stay legible at 34mm — shine would flatten it.
The relief stands on a mirror-polished back plate. Figure, dragon and clouds are cut deep and undercut, with gaps between them, and the polished plate behind catches whatever is around it — so the open spaces read dark in hard light and bright in shade. Seen edge-on the piece is a flat plate with the whole scene standing proud of it.
The back is plain. One smooth, mirror-polished face, following the same lotus-bud outline, with the stamp on the bail.
A single row of round diamonds runs the full outline — up over the arch, in at both waists, out around the lower lobes and along the bottom. Approximately 67 stones in that row, each bead-set between a polished inner and outer edge. The bail is a hinged two-row pavé post, roughly 22 stones across its front face, with a 6mm opening; its reverse is plain polished.
Guan Yin is the bodhisattva of compassion; the dragon she rides is the older Chinese emblem of moving water and weather. Put together they are the standard reading of the pair — mercy with real force behind it.
Why You’ll Love It:
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Riding, Not Standing – She sits side-saddle on a dragon that coils through cloud
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Pierced Flame Mandorla – Cut-through scrollwork behind a double polished halo
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Frosted Relief, Polished Frame – Sandblasted figure against bright metal
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Mirror-Polished Back Plate – Deeply undercut relief standing on a plain polished face
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Diamonds All the Way Round – A single row following the full lotus-bud outline
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Two-Row Pavé Bail – Hinged, with a 6mm opening
Chain not included.
Made to order, turnaround time is typically 2-4 weeks.
Estimated Weight by Purity
| Purity |
Approx. Weight |
| 10K |
17.3g |
| 14K |
19.6g |
| 18K |
23.0g |
| 22K |
26.7g |
Total carat weight: Approximately .80tcw
Estimated number of stones: Approximately 89
Dimensions: 34mm height without the bail; 46mm overall with the bail
Bail opening: 6mm
Chain not included
Approximate Weight Notice
Due to the handcrafted nature of our jewelry and natural variations in gold alloys, listed weights are approximate. Minor differences may occur from piece to piece. These variations are a normal part of fine jewelry production and reflect the individuality of each item. For any changes or questions, please use the "Custom Work" page.
