Untitled

Unknown

11th–12th century · Gilt arsenical bronze · Asian Art

This esoteric form of Avalokiteshvara holds a range of attributes in his twenty-four hands, including the sun, the moon, a vajra, and a bell. Multiarmed, powerful tantric forms of Avalokiteshvara were introduced into East Asia by the monk Amoghavajra as part of an eighth-century effort to repel Tibet’s military expansion across Central Asia. Later, this protective form of Avalokiteshvara, who is able to aid his numerous devotees with his many arms, became especially popular in Tibet after the north Indian monk Atisha (980–1054) emphasized this tantric deity.

Artist

Unknown

Date

11th–12th century

Medium

Gilt arsenical bronze

Culture

China, Yunnan Province

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1956