Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara

late 7th century

Not on view

Returned to lender

This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.

This is the earliest metal bodhisattva sculpture found in Myanmar. Four-armed, with an Amitabha Buddha in the headdress, it is Avalokiteshvara, the embodiment of Buddhist compassion. The flexed posture suggests that it and a companion Maitreya probably formed a triad with a central Buddha. It is linked to the international Buddhist style of the late seventh and eighth centuries. It stands alone in the corpus of Pyu bronzes and therefore may be an import from a neighboring region, perhaps the Thai Peninsula, or its maker may have learned his skills elsewhere.

cat. no. 144

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara
Date: late 7th century
Culture: Central Myanmar
Medium: Copper alloy
Dimensions: H. 7 7/8 in. (20 cm)
Classification: Sculpture
Credit Line: Lent by National Museum of Myanmar, Yangon (1650)
Curatorial Department: Asian Art