Abstract
Since the Ming dynasty, Hunan province has produced a unique religious statuary. We find a large quantity of statues devoted not only to the gods of the pantheon— as is typical of many places in China — but also to the cult of Daoist masters. In the collection Patrice Fava began to assemble fifteen years ago, twenty-two statues of Daoist masters came from the Shima sandu region of Xinhua district, and all these masters were surnamed Kang. They lived at the end of the Qing dynasty or during the Republican period. Another interesting fact is that most of the sculptors are surnamed Kang: Kang Yushan, Kang Daidi, Kang Guishan, Kang Faxian, Kang Baolin, Kang Hankui. Based on fieldwork conducted in Shima sandu in 2015, the article shows that the Kang family is still active, and that many sculptors received a Daoist ordination.
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