PROVENANCE:
Private collection, Europe

This figure represents Maitreya in one of his many artistic incarnations. The deity is seated in vajraparyankasana on a double lotus throne, gazing forward in meditation under an elaborate foliate crown with a stem rising from the middle and spreading into a crescent shape, which is a commonly seen design of the imperial figures of Buddha of that time. His long plaited hair cascading down the back, wearing an upper robe and dhoti incised with foliate motif, with turquoise urna and jewelry inlaid with semi-precious stones, also wearing long beaded necklaces with matching bracelets and earrings, hands raised in dharmachakra mudra, flanked on each side by a tall flower, a long ratnopavita looping around the body and under the feet to the lotus pedestal beneath, This figure is exquisitely crafted, with its origin and artistic style all making it one of the representative works of the Yuan capital.