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Portrait of a Sakya Lama
OriginTibet
Date18th century
Dimensions7 5/8 × 7 1/8 × 5 1/2 in.
MediumGilt copper alloy
Classification(s)
Credit LineRubin Museum of Art
Object numberC2004.10.1
Himalayan Art Resources Number65353
DescriptionThis statue depicts a teacher, probably of the Sakya Buddhist tradition. In this portrait he is sitting in a meditative posture. He wears a monk’s robe, although his long hair and twisted locks mark him as a yogi, or tantric practitioner. In his left hand he holds what was probably a vajra bell, whose shell has since fallen off, with a strand of prayer beads hanging on his wrist. His right hand holds a vajra in the gesture of generosity (varada mudra). The holes in his earlobes suggest there were once earrings. His eyes are wide open, his face calm with a tender smile. His seat is covered with a deer skin, another symbol of a tantric practitioner.Not on view
15th century
7th century
16th century
late 18th - 19th century
ca. 17th century
12th-13th century
late 19th century
19th century
15th century
19th century
