Maitreya Bodhisattva

PAKISTAN

Created in the Gandharan region, this statue mixes Indian, Hellenistic, and Roman influences. Though most of the jewelry worn by the remarkably detailed Maitreya is Indian, the necklace featuring a lyre held by two stylized centaurs is decidedly Greek.
The Bodhisattva has a plain nimbus and a high topknot decorated with numerous ornaments. The eyes are deep-set with an urna between, while the nose is prominent and there is a mustache. The Bodhisattva carries a vase in the left hand and the missing right hand may have been raised in either the abhaya (fearlessness) or vitarka (teaching) mudra. A wide stole is wrapped about the right shoulder and loops over to the left arm. The folds in this garment and the skirt below are prominently detailed.