Bodhisattvas and Attendants

University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
#C113, C151, C150

Location: China, Henan Province, possibly from the Southern Xiangtangshan Cave Temples near Zhangdefu.

Made from Limestone

Northern Qi Dynasty (550 AD - 577 AD)

These three figures originally accompanied a larger central image of the Buddha. The two lavishly ornamented bodhisattvas (the two ouer statues) would have stood on either side of the Buddha.

Bodhisattvas - beings that have attained enlightenment but postponed Buddhahood in order to help others find salvation.

The attendant (middle) is holding a bud of a lotus blossom would be standing at a subordinate level to the Buddha and the bodhisattvas.