The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of January 31, 2023

Standing Avalokitesvara

금동 관음보살 입상 (金銅觀音菩薩立像)

700s

Korea, Unified Silla period

(668-935)

Gilt-bronze

Overall: 18.5 x 6.5 x 4.5 cm (7 5/16 x 2 9/16 x 1 3/4 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1998.80

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

Created during the Unified Silla period, a high point of the spread of Buddhist teachings, this kind of miniature gilt-bronze statue was often used as a portable object of devotion by traveling Buddhist monks.

Description

This small gilt-bronze statue represents the Bodhisattva of Compassion (관음보살 in Korean), an enlightened being who helps devotees on their path. It features two prominent attributes: a water sprinkler (kundika in Sanskrit) and a miniature image of Buddha Amitābha in its jeweled crown. Its sweet and gentle smile accentuates this celestial being’s immeasurable compassion for human suffering.

Provenance
June 1, 1998
Cleveland Museum of Art
London Gallery, Ltd. (sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, June 1, 1998)
Mitsuru Tajima
Citations
Lee, So-young, and Denise Patry Leidy. Silla: Korea's Golden Kingdom. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2013.
Washizuka, Hiromitsu, Youngbok Park, U-bang Kang, and Naomi Noble Richard. Transmitting the Forms of Divinity: Early Buddhist Art from Korea and Japan. New York: Japan Society, 2003.
Gwak, Dong-seok. Hanguk ui geumdongbul [한국의 금동불] . Seoul: Dareun sesang, 2016.
Nelson, Sarah. Gyeongju: The Capital of Golden Silla. Routledge, 2019.
Masterpieces of Early Buddhist Sculpture [고대불교조각대전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2015.
Exhibition history

Korean Gallery 236 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (July 16, 2018-January 20, 2019).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1998.80