Amitabha Buddha Triad

KOREA; Goryeo dynasty

In the center of this painting, Amitabha Buddha is portrayed with a low, flat usnisa, a full face, fine eyebrows, and almond-shaped eyes. The Buddha wears a red monastic robe decorated with circular motifs and sits in full lotus position on a high throne, displaying a mudra. The throne is decorated with an image of a crouching lion on its front face and is flanked by the Bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara on the right and Mahasthamaprapta on the left. They both wear headdresses, stand barefooted on lotus pedestals, and are adorned with ornaments. Avalokitesvara holds a vase in the right hand and prayer beads in the left, while Mahasthamaprapta’s right hand supports a sutra. The Buddhas of the Ten Directions sit on clouds in the two upper corners. The headdresses of the Bodhisattvas and the details on the throne suggest that this painting dates from the late Goryeo dynasty.