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The Primordial Buddha Vajradhara

15th century
Not on view
The Buddha Vajradhara is a divine manifestation of the totality of Buddhist teachings and is credited with being the source of the Buddhist tantric texts. Here, he holds a vajra and a bell that symbolizes energy (male) and emptiness (female). This sculpture is remarkable for the many surviving original inset pieces of turquoise and semiprecious stones and for the silver wire inlay in his dhoti (loincloth). These components indicate his divine status and evoke the crystalline nature of the heaven where he resides.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Primordial Buddha Vajradhara
  • Date: 15th century
  • Culture: Tibet
  • Medium: Gilt copper alloy with inlaid silver filaments, turquoise, and semiprecious stones
  • Dimensions: H. 18 in. (45.7 cm); W. 12 1/4 in. (31.1 cm); D. 9 in. (22.9 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Bequest of W. Gedney Beatty, 1941
  • Object Number: 41.160.97a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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Vajracharya Priest’s Crown, Gilt copper alloy with semiprecious stones, lapis lazuli, and turquoise inlays, Nepal
Vajracharya Priest’s Crown
Nepal
13th–early 14th century
Nineteen Ornamental Fittings from a Horse Harness and an Ornamental Saddle Steel, Iron, gold, silver, copper, leather, saddle plate, Chinese or Tibetan; harness fittings, Tibetan
Nineteen Ornamental Fittings from a Horse Harness and an Ornamental Saddle Steel
saddle plate, Chinese or Tibetan; harness fittings, Tibetan
saddle plate, 17th–18th century; harness fittings, 15th–17th century
Durga as Slayer of the Buffalo Demon Mahishasura, Gilt copper alloy, inlaid with semiprecious stones, Nepal
Durga as Slayer of the Buffalo Demon Mahishasura
Nepal
14th–15th century
Saddle, Iron, gold, silver, copper, leather, wood, textile, Eastern Tibetan or Chinese
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possibly 17th–18th century

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