This wooden seated figure is a mandarin or the god known as "Nyut Hung", the Jade Emperor, also sometimes referred to as the Prince of the Mediums. Dressed in red cloth with a tall head piece, he held a court tablet, now missing. Traces of red pigment are still visible beneath a patina of soot presumably from the incense burned at the altar. Yao deities reportedly come from Guangxi province in China. The Yao or Mien as they are also known, are Miao-Yao language speakers (related to Sino-Tibetan languages), who are thought to have originated in southern China. They use Chinese written language in their religious practices and have historical documents written in Chinese as proof of their identity and history of special status as nomadic people. While their migration southwards to areas such as Hainan and Guangxi province took place over several centuries, their immigration into mountainous northern areas of mainland Southeast Asia occurred mainly during the 19th century. They practice a mix of Daoism, animism and ancestor worship.
