Seated Bodhisattva
China (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region)
Not on view
The seated bodhisattva in this fragment of a wall painting displays the gesture of exposition or teaching with his left hand. While he wears the elaborate jeweled headdress, earrings, and necklaces typical of a bodhisattva, his garments are monastic robes. Their green color is typical of Central Asian painting, while much of the black was not intended but instead is the result of the oxidation of pigments.