Shuanglin Temple Sakyamuni Hall: Samantabhadra Bodhisattva

CHINA, Shanxi, Jinzhong; Ming dynasty

The Bodhisattva flanks the main statue in the Sakyamuni Hall. Samantabhadra is depicted holding the long stem of a half-opened lotus and gazing downwards. The fingers gesture eloquently rather than form mudras. The hair is arranged in double spirals, above which is an ornate headdress. The hollow in the forehead was once inset with the stud of an urna and the neck has the three folds of a great person. Stoles fall buoyantly from the shoulders and over the arms, which are ornamented with armlets and bracelets. The skirt is long and descends in a series of stepped waves.