Buddhas of the Past and Present

ca. 475-534 C. E.

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.