Murtuk: Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva

CHINA, Xinjiang, Turpan

This partially damaged painting was discovered in Murtuk, Xinjiang. According to the inscription written in Uighur within the cartouche centered in the bottom register, it portrays people making offerings in the hope that they will someday attain nirvana and escape the cycle of birth and death.
The central figure, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, wears a red robe and a crown with a small Buddha image in the center. The left hand appears to hold a vase, and the right hand forms a mudra in front of the chest. The Buddhas of the Ten Directions are painted at the top of the image; only nine of them are still visible. Six figures with nimbuses are arranged around Avalokitesvara. They wear clothing similar to the central figure, except for Hariti on the left, who is dressed in white and carries her son in her left arm.
At the bottom of the picture, six figures making offerings flank the cartouche in the center. Avalokitesvara is outlined in red, setting the figure apart from the remaining figures which are outlined in black.