An inscribed silver and copper-inlaid copper alloy figure of Maitreya, Tibet, 15th / 16th century

Gifted in 1970 by Tibetan refugees, in appreciation of charitable work.

This finely cast sculpture depicts a seated Buddha figure silver inlaid eyes and copper lips shown frontally, with both hands held before the chest in dharmacakramudra, the gesture of teaching. The figure is seated in padmasana on a lotus base. The treatment of the robe is monastic rather than bodhisattva-like, reinforcing the identification of the figure as a Buddha rather than an ornamented bodhisattva.

The dedicatory inscription incised along the lower edge of the pedestal allows for a more precise identification of the image as the future Buddha Maitreya. Devotional in nature, the inscription opens with the Sanskrit formula Namo (“Homage”), rendered in Tibetan script, followed by the invocation of Lord Maitreya (Maitreyanatha). The deliberate use of a Sanskrit devotional formula, despite the inscription being written in Tibetan, underscores the continued ritual authority and sanctity of Sanskrit within Buddhist religious practice. The combination of dharmacakramudra and the explicit dedication underscores the role of Maitreya as the future teacher of the Dharma. The inscription confirms that the image was conceived not merely as a generic Buddha figure, but as a specific devotional representation of Maitreya, emphasizing his salvific and didactic function.

The inscription reads:

byams pa mgon po la na mo, which translates as:

"Namo! [Homage] to Lord Maitreya!"

Compare the lotus base style and the floral motifs on the robe with a 15th or 16th century silver and copper inlaid Buddha in the Berti Aschmann collection, that is inscribed with the names of artists from Guge and the Tibetan monastery for which it was made, Ka-rag bsam-gtan, see Uhlig, On the Path to Enlightenment, Zurich, 1995, cat. no. 29.