WESTERN NEPAL, KHASA MALLA PERIOD, 13TH-14TH CENTURY

This finely cast Shakyamuni Buddha embodies the sophisticated aesthetic of the Khasa Malla kingdom in the early fourteenth century. The concentric rows of lotus petals swell outward in deep, sculptural relief, creating a sense of volume and vitality rarely achieved in bronzes of this small scale. Each broad petal is further enriched by the inclusion of a smaller jewel-like motif at its center, a distinctive design found only in a select group of closely related Khasa Malla works (c.f. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, M.85.221).