Art of the Silk Road, Shimane Prefectural Museum, Japan, 1973

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Large size reliefs like this one are very rare. This work depicts the Buddha sitting on a lotus throne with his hands at the chest in dharmachakra mudra (preaching gesture). He is flanked by two standing figures: on the left side is a Bodhisattva wearing a turban, on the right side is Bodhisattva Maitreya with his hair arranged in a loop topknot, holding a water-flask in his left hand. Each figure has an umbrellas overhead.

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