Buddhas of the Past and Present
date: label: Date
content: ca. 475-534 C. E.
label: Period
content: Northern Wei dynasty
notes: label: Label
content: The inscription on the base of this fragmentary devotional image does not contain a legible date, but the style is consistent with gilt bronzes made during the Northern Wei dynasty (386-535). The image represents the Buddha of the Present conversing with the Buddha of the Past, an event described in the Lotus Sutra, a sacred text. As the inscription attests, lay Buddhist worshipers commissioned the image to accumulate spiritual merit.
label: Label
content: Museum conservators who removed a layer of earthy incrustation from the work in 1956 found the gilding exceptionally well preserved. The image's excellent condition coupled with its somewhat perplexing mixture of stylistic features from both the fifth and the sixth centuries brought the object under scrutiny as a fake. The soft drapery folds, the rounded faces, and the details of the dragon arch are consistent with fifth-century works, but the "waterfall" drapery cascading over the front of the dais more closely resembles a sixth-century work. Nonetheless, the sculpture is currently accepted as genuine, and detailed scientific examination supports its authenticity.
label: Provenance
content: To 1911
label: Provenance
content: Ta Ge Shang, Beijing, to 1911 [1]
label: Provenance
content: From 1911 to 1919
label: Provenance
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Ta Ge Shang in 1911 [2]
label: Provenance
content: From 1920
label: Provenance
content: Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] See Original Bronze List, S.I. 285, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
label: Provenance
content: [2] See note 1.
label: Provenance
content: [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
label: Collection
content: Freer Gallery of Art Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: Chinese Buddhist Sculpture in New Light (April 14, 2002 to September 8, 2003)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Ta Ge Shang (C.L. Freer source)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
place: label: Origin
content: China
topic: label: Topic
content: casting
label: Topic
content: gilding
label: Topic
content: metal
label: Topic
content: bronze
label: Topic
content: Buddhism
label: Topic
content: Northern Wei dynasty (386 - 534)
label: Topic
content: China
label: Topic
content: halo
label: Topic
content: Shakyamuni
label: Topic
content: Prabhutaratna Buddha
label: Topic
content: dhyana mudra
label: Topic
content: Chinese Art
label: Topic
content: Charles Lang Freer collection
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Charles Lang Freer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: F1911.130
objectType: label: Type
content: Sculpture
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Bronze, gilt
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 13.8 x 13.4 x 6.1 cm (5 7/16 x 5 1/4 x 2 3/8 in)