Buddha. Lan Na Kingdom, northern Thailand, 17th century.

Buddha. Lan Na Kingdom, northern Thailand, 17th century.
Bronze.
Finished with black lacquer and gold.
In good condition.
Measurements: 20,5 cm x 11,5 cm x 8 cm,

Seventeenth century bronze sculpture from the Lan Na Kingdom, Northern Thailand. It represents a seated Buddha in the posture of the lotus flower and performing a mudra that symbolizes that he takes the earth as a witness. His throne is in the shape of a synthesized lotus flower. His laughing countenance radiates peace and wisdom. The symmetry of his physiognomic features expresses serenity (the perfect double arch of the eyebrows is characteristic of Lan Na Buddhas), the closed eyelids indicate meditation, the elongated earlobes are an emblem of nobility. The headdress, carefully carved, ends with a flaming pigtail. The bhumi spara mudra ('gesture of touching the Earth', being bhumi: 'the planet Earth'; and sparsha: 'to touch') represents the moment when Buddha solved the problem of ending suffering when he was under the Bodhi tree. Usually depicted by the historical Buddha and seated in the lotus position, as in this bronze. The right hand touches the ground with the fingertips; the left hand rests on the leg with the palm facing up.