Standing Buddha

CHINA; Northern Wei dynasty

The Buddha stands on a large inverted lotus pedestal that is supported on a stand, the legs of which curve to thicken at the base. The slender figure has a rounded usnisa and looks downward. The Buddha wears a monastic robe over both shoulders that descend in a series of dramatic flares.
The composition is framed within a petal-shaped mandorla filled with stylistic flames. An aureole with multiple rims sweeps up from the bottom of the mandorla to intersect with the three pronounced rims about the Buddha’s lotus-patterned nimbus. The presence of two rectangular holes in the mandorla indicates the statue might have been the center of a Buddha triad. An inscription on the stand dates the work to 526.