Dimensions: 8-7/8" H

Pernicious, Ming Dynasty Period, Chinese gilt bronze Buddha figure of Amitabha Buddha. Seated in the perfect posture of meditation, with one serene cold gilt face and two hands, blue-black hair in tufts with a top-knot ornament and the split ears of a prince, he wears the saffron robes of a fully ordained monk silk. The two hands are placed in the lap in the mudra gesture of meditation and hold a begging bowl filled with nectar. With the two legs folded in vajra posture seated above a lotus throne. Extensive trace of gilt and blue-black pigment on the hair. The bronze is very fine, with a brilliant glaze finish that was applied by a meticulous, the shape is uniformly proportioned,
The underside with incised quatrefoil flori-form petal visvavajra mark surrounding the centralized DaiJi, enclosed within Bajixiang Octo-foil lotus petal.
There are many different Buddhas represented in Buddhist art. Following after the many images of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni the next most common Buddha form to appear in art is likely to be Amitabha (immeasurable light). His popularity is based in the Mahayana Sutra literature of which there are many texts devoted to him. In art depictions Amitabha has two appearances and two names that differentiate those appearances. When referred to as Amitabha he has the appearance of a standard buddha form, although red in color, wearing the traditional patchwork robes of a monk. In his other appearance he has a different name, Amitayus (immeasurable life), and wears the clothing and jeweled adornments of a peaceful heavenly god according to the classical Indian system of divine aesthetics. There are two main types of Amitabha: Buddha Appearance Amitabha, Peaceful Appearance Amitabha. In the Mahayana Tradition of Buddhism a buddha is described as having three bodies: a form body (nirmanakaya), an apparitional body (sambhogakaya) and an ultimate truth body (dharmakaya). Amitabha and Amitayus are the same person, the first is the form body and the second the apparitional body. The ultimate truth body is without description. The important iconographic difference between the two, Amitabha and Amitayus, is almost always Amitabha has Buddha Appearance and Amitayus has Bodhisattva Appearance.

Over all in EXCELLENT condition. With normal anomalies in nature, sign of stressed surface, minor scratch & dents. Surface traced wear and or declined to gilding. Normal, consider ages and wear.
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