TIBET, 17TH-18TH CENTURY

Seated on a low throne with his legs pendent and resting on a diminutive lotus base and his hands held in dharmachakramudra, the current figure represents the future buddha, Maitreya, preaching in the Tushita Heaven. Maitreya awaits the day when the teachings of the Gautama Buddha, Shakyamuni, are forgotten by earth's inhabitants, at which point he will descend from the Tushita Heaven to become a buddha. The present figure, richly gilt and heavily cast, exudes reassurance through his benevolent facial expression and graceful gesture.