TIBET, 13TH-14TH CENTURY

The iconographical features of this small gilt-bronze figure of a lama evoke the historical buddha’s moment of enlightenment, when the earth shook beneath his fingertips in recognition of his achievement. Seated upon a double-lotus base with a vajra placed just in front of his meditative posture, the figure portrayed is evidently a highly-esteemed lama of an early period. The curved edges of the shirt he wears beneath his robe are telling of the period of origin, as square-edged shirts become the standard from the 14th century on. The quality of this casting is especially evident in the beaded and incised hems of his patchwork robe and shirt along with the floral meditation cape and the tiny braided rope that falls at its center.