Standing Bodhisattva Maitreya

Pakistan (likely Swat Valley or Gilgit region)

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 237

This bodhisattva wears highly unusual costume and jewelry, including a waistcloth, sash, and elaborate necklace and diadem, which suggests it is styled after a particular court fashion, perhaps from the Swat Valley or Gilgit region. The fragmentary water bottle held in his left hand identifies him as Maitreya, the messianic Buddha of the future. The lotus base and rocky pedestal are not contemporary with the figure.

Standing Bodhisattva Maitreya, Copper alloy, gilded and silvered, with silver inlay, Pakistan (likely Swat Valley or Gilgit region)

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