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Photography by Bruce M. White. The Rubin Museum of Art. 2011.
Copy of the Sandalwood Buddha (rgya nag gi tsandan jo bo)
Photography by Bruce M. White. The Rubin Museum of Art. 2011.
Photography by Bruce M. White. The Rubin Museum of Art. 2011.

Copy of the Sandalwood Buddha (rgya nag gi tsandan jo bo)

OriginTibet
Date18th century
Dimensions8 3/4 × 4 1/8 × 3 in.
MediumGilt copper alloy
Classification(s)
Credit LineRubin Museum of Art, Gift of John and Berthe Ford
Object numberC2005.9.1
Himalayan Art Resources Number65406
DescriptionThis sculpture of the Buddha represents him in a form believed to be modeled on the first image of Buddha Shakyamuni. That image was created at the bequest of the Indian king Udhyana and depicts the Buddha when he descended from the Realm of the Thirty-three Gods, after teaching his mother there, to continue his teaching in the human realm. This type of standing Buddha image was very popular in Central Asia and China and subsequently in Tibet.