
Gilt bronze
Vajrasattva sits in full lotus position while holding an iron vajra in the right hand and grasping a ritual bell in the left hand. The vajra was most likely a replacement for the original. The crown the figure wears is partly damaged but the braids are still visible. The jewelry adorning the statue is studded with lapis lazuli, crystal, turquoise, and coral. The only other garment the figure wears is a thin skirt molded tightly to the legs, so the pattern of the hem is incised into the shin and calf. Two lotus stalks from behind the thighs,that were originally flowered rise to the elbows. The double lotus throne on which the Bodhisattva sits is oval.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture St-Z, page 1296.