Blessed Lord Buddha
1838
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1838
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Blessed Lord Buddha is a 1838 unspecified by Unknown, a Romanticism work, depicting Sri Lanka, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a golden Buddha glowing against a dark background, surrounded by disciples, gods, and protectors. Below him, the earth goddess balances a pot of water on her head while three Sri Lankan guardians stand nearby—one with six heads and twelve arms. This painting was made in Sri Lanka around 1825–50, but we don’t know who painted it or what materials they used. The mix of Buddhist figures with local Sri Lankan deities shows how religion and culture blended in the region. To see more art like this, look up the subject Sri Lanka.
The central figure of the Buddha, radiating light and the flame of enlightenment, is flanked by his four main disciples: Sariputra and the blue Moggallana on his left, and Ananda and Anuruddha on his right. Below him is the earth goddess holding a pot of water on her head. To her right are three guardians of Sri Lanka: Kataragama (or Skanda) with six heads and twelve arms; the blue Vibhishana, younger brother of Ravana; and, smaller in size, may be Pattina holding an anklet and neem leaf. On the opposite side are three deities: Sumana, the four-faced Brahma, and four-armed Shiva with trident.…
The yellow pigment contains chromium, which was not used in pigments until 1818.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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