Eleven Faces, Foot on Lotus

Viewing notes

A viewer's written impression — not a buyer review or first-hand record

This polychrome bodhisattva wears eleven faces: small heads rise in tiers above the gentle main face, a tiny seated figure at the very top, the eyes lowered in a kindly gaze. One hand rests by the knee, lightly fingering a string of prayer beads; the other lifts a lotus stem at the chest, its pink bloom open beside the shoulder. Pale blue gauze and an orange-red skirt fall in soft folds, beaded chains set with green stones running from neck to lap. The pose is easy — one leg folded, one foot lowered to rest on a lotus that rises from the base. Behind spreads a vast round aureole of concentric rings in teal, orange and gold, its rim a full circle of orange-red flame dotted with floral medallions. Clouds curl around the seat, small red phoenixes guard the corners, and the dark plinth is finely carved. Kindly and radiant at once — a reassuring presence for devotion or display.