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Description: | "Buddhist images (twenty four) bronze, found buried under a pagoda erected by King Alaungpaya." [Register]
Metal figurine of buddha. Pagan style. Pagan Period was from 1044-1287A.D. The sculpture is characterized by a triangular-shaped face, V-shaped eyebrows, slender nose, half smiling mouth, rows of small spiral curls for hair and elongated ears that do not touch the shoulders. The Pagan dynasty was the first time the three ethnic groups of Burma were unified. Also referred to as the ‘Golden Age’ in history, thought and architecture in Burma. It was during this time that Theravada Buddhism, the style currently practiced today, was introduced. The dynasty collapsed upon the invasion of the Mongols.
Sitting in dhyanasana, or the meditation pose, is when the legs are crossed with the soles of both feet turned upwards and resting on opposite thighs.
Bhumisparsa mudra, or the ‘earth touching gesture’, is formed with all five fingers of the right hand extended to touch the ground. This gesture symbolizes the Buddha's enlightenment under the bodhi tree when he summoned the earth goddess, Sthavara, to bear witness to his attainment of enlightenment. The right hand, placed upon the right knee in earth-pressing mudra, and complemented by the left hand-which is held flat in the lap in the dhyana mudra of meditation, symbolizes the union of method and wisdom, samasara and nirvana, and also the realizations of the conventional and ultimate truths. It is in this posture that Shakyamuni overcame the obstructions of Mara while meditating on Truth.
Elongated finial. Sitting on a meditation thrown. Burma.
Accession number: NCM 1889-181 | Subjects: | metalwork religion (buddhism) BURMESE figures | Temporal: | 1757 | Source: | Nottingham City Museums and Galleries | Identifier: | http://media.culturegrid.org.uk/mediaLib... | Go to resource |
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