Collection record · Belief & ritual
Seated Maitreya Buddha
The collection record classifies this work as sculpture. It is dated c. 1400. Recorded culture or place: Western Tibet, Yongle Period (1403–1424).
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A closer look at the details.
- Museum title
- Seated Maitreya Buddha
- Date
- c. 1400
- Culture / origin
- Western Tibet, Yongle Period (1403–1424)
- Materials and technique
- Bronze, silver, and traces of pigment
- Dimensions
- Overall: 18.6 cm (7 5/16 in.); Base: 12.2 cm (4 13/16 in.)
- Artist / maker
- Not specified by the museum
- Museum
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession number
- 1989.364
FROM THE MUSEUM
In the museum’s words
The following description is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s original English record.
Maitreya is the “future Buddha,” who will descend to preach new teachings once those of the Buddha Shakyamuni have expired or are in a state of decline. Depicted here as a Buddha, rather than a bejeweled bodhisattva, this image is a vision of the future. The robe is sumptuous, covered with incised floral patterns. The mudra, or gesture, is called dharmachakra, or “turning the wheel of the law,” meaning Maitreya is shown in the act of giving teachings. The wheel on his palms and soles—here shown in the form of lotuses—is one of the physical marks of a Buddha. Other marks include an urna at the center of his brow and an ushnisha, the bump on top of his head.
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Text and image sources
The Cleveland Museum of Art · Bequest of Mrs. Severance A. Millikin · CC0
The summary is based on public collection data. Refer to the museum’s latest record for the title, date and attribution.
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