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Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva
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Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva
CHINA; Sui dynasty (581–618); Limestone; H: 101 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA
This sculpture reflects the high standard of Buddhist statuary during the Sui dynasty (581-618). The Bodhisattva wears a complex flowery headdress on which a figure of Amitabha is mounted. The slightly smiling face is short and round. The stole loops across the body to the ground and a variety of jewelry hangs down to the skirt. The right hand is raised in a mudra that is indecipherable since fingers are missing. The left arm hangs downward, holding a vase from which lotuses rise, one a bud, one a pod, and one a blossom. The figure stands on a double-lotus pedestal that rests on an octagonal arched base carved with figures in relief. |
