On loan to The Met The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Portrait of the Third Kagyu Taklung Abbot, Sangye Yarjon
Not on view
A distinctive painting style, seen in small, sumptuous, and detailed monastic portraits, emerged at the Taklung monastery. In this refined example, the facial features and neck folds of the Taklung abbot Sangye Yarjon (1203–1272) relate to early Tibetan wall painting from the end of the twelfth century. His hands and feet are dyed red with henna like those of a deity; his right hand makes the earth-touching gesture of enlightenment. An inscription in gold on the verso by his student Lama Rinpoche Wonpo (1251–1296), who was forced out of Taklung and founded the Riwoche monastery in 1276, helps contextualize the portrait within this period of monastic transition.
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