Swat: Buddha and Attendants

PAKISTAN, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Swat

The Buddha backed by an ornate openwork nimbus and its pedestal was cast as one piece. The Dharma wheel shaped nimbus is a rimmed by flames with a stupa at the apex. The figure is identified as Sakyamuni sitting in full lotus position upon a lion throne supported on an inverted lotus. One of the beads embedded in the eyes is missing. The Buddha wears a tight monastic robe that covers both shoulders. The right hand is in varada (wish-granting) mudra, while the left hand lifts the hem of the robe.
Attending Bodhisattvas flank the Buddha, the one on the right holds a long-stemmed lotus. Above the Bodhisattvas are two figures, probably monks, with aureoles. Two donor figures kneel with joined palms below the throne. The tribhanga postures of the attending Bodhisattvas, and the flame motifs circling the Buddha’s nimbus are sculptural features from this period.