What's it worth? Appraisal for carved laughing Buddha

 Sarah asks:

Solid wood (base is separate piece), Laughing Buddha. Ivory teeth and earring. 24" in height, 14" in width at base.
Carving is one solid piece of wood. Base is separate.
Bought at flea market, no history of piece is known.

Antique furniture restoration expert said that the piece is hand carved rosewood.

NO identifying markings. Nothing on bottom of base, nor bottom of carving when taken off base.

AW says: This is a 20th century carved statue, most likely an Indian import. The work is well done as we can see by the detail and proportion of the hands and feet. What I like about your statue besides the quality and animation of it, is that it's make from one solid piece of wood. As far as quality goes, a piece made out of a single block of wood is almost always more valuable than those made with several pieces.

Your antiques expert is correct, this is rosewood, here's a bit about rosewood:

All genuine rosewoods belong to the genus Dalbergia. The pre-eminent rosewood appreciated in the western world is Dalbergia nigra (Brazilian Rosewood), which is now a CITES-listed endangered species. It is also known as Rio rosewood or Bahia rosewood. This wood has a strong sweet smell, which persists over the years, explaining the name "rosewood".

Another classic rosewood is Dalbergia latifolia known as (East) Indian rosewood or sonokeling. Note that not all species in the large genus Dalbergia yield rosewoods, but only about a dozen species. They can be found in tropical America, Southeast Asia, and Madagascar. The woods of some other species in the genus Dalbergia are notable, even famous, woods in their own right: African Blackwood, cocobolo, kingwood, and tulipwood. The Indian souvenir trade tries to sell objects made of Dalbergia sissoo (sometimes stained purple) as if they were rosewood. The wood of some other species is usable for tool handles at best.

Date range: 20th century

Retail value: $225
(top price)

Wholesale value: $95
(The mid range price you could expect to achieve at a well advertised live auction. The price that is most often realized)

Quick sale value: $65
The price your likely to get if you have to sell your item immediately and your prospective customer is aware of this.

Common terminology, nicknames, keywords: Laughing stretching Buddha, rosewood statue, carved statue