Amitābha Buddha from Hancui

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Amitābha Buddha
The Amitābha Buddha on display at the British Museum
Material	Marble
Size	5.8 m high, 2 m wide
Created	585 AD
Present location	British Museum, London
Registration	OA 1938.7-15.1

The Amitābha Buddha or Amitabha Buddha is an enormous Buddhist statue that was originally located in Hancui village in Hebei province, northern China. Dating to the 6th Century AD, it was given to the British Museum by the Chinese Government in 1938.^[1]^[2]

Discovery

The inscription on the sculpture's base records that it was dedicated at the Chongguang temple in Hancui village in Hebei in the fifth year of Kaihung of the Sui dynasty, which equates to the year 585 AD. The village of Hancui can no longer be identified for certain, but it is understood to be located south-west of the city of Baoding in Hebei province, a region which in the past was known for its white marble. The statue was donated by the art dealer C.T. Loo to the Chinese Government, who in turn presented it in 1938 to the British Museum to commemorate the Chinese Exhibition, which took place in London between 1935 and 1936.

Description

At nearly 6 metres high, the Amitābha Buddha is the largest ancient Chinese statue in the West. Although largely intact, the now missing hands would have been fixed into the arm sockets by dowels. The right hand would have been raised in the gesture of fearlessness (abhayamudra), and the left hand lowered in the gesture of bestowal (varadamudra). The figure was carved in high relief to reveal garments with very flat folds, which was typical of figurative art in the Sui period. The whole statue stands on a massive lotus base with a dedicatory inscription in Chinese. Traces of red paint have also been found on the back. The Amitābha Buddha was originally flanked by a smaller standing bodhisattva that is now in the Tokyo National Museum.

Buddhism in China

In Buddhist doctrine, Amitābha rules over the Western Paradise, a serene and heavenly land where those who repeatedly chant his name can be reborn. Amitābha was very popular during the Sui dynasty (589-618 AD), when many buddhist images were created for pious devotees. This colossal marble figure is thought to be one such work and may have been modelled on Indian bronze statuary brought to China through the Silk Road.

Gallery

Detail of the head from the Amitābha Buddha

References

Africa, Oceania and Americas	Akan Drum Aubin Codex Benin Bronzes Briggs Enigma Bronze Head from Ife Codex Kingsborough Double-headed serpent Hoa Hakananai'a Throne of Weapons Kayung totem pole Tree of Life Yaxchilan Lintel 24
Ancient Egypt and Sudan	Battlefield Palette Colossal quartzite statue of Amenhotep III Colossal head of Amenhotep III El-Amra clay model of cattle Gebelein predynastic mummies Greenfield papyrus Hornedjitef Hunters Palette MacGregor plaque Min Palette Papyrus of Ani Prudhoe Lions Rhind Mathematical Papyrus Rosetta Stone Sphinx of Taharqo Amun in the form of a ram protecting King Taharqa Younger Memnon
Asia	Admonitions Scroll Aphsad inscription of Ādityasena Amaravati Marbles Ambika Statue from Dhar Amitābha Buddha from Hancui Bimaran casket Buddhapad Hoard Mogao Christian painting David Vases Dhaneswar Khera Buddha image inscription Hephthalite silver bowl Huixian Bronze Hu Jade terrapin from Allahabad Kakiemon elephants Kang Hou gui Kanishka casket Klang Bell Kulu Vase Mathura lion capital Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art Seated Buddha from Gandhara Stamp seal (BM 119999) Statue of Tara The Great Wave off Kanagawa Vishnu Nicolo Seal Wardak Vase
Greece and Rome	Aegina Treasure Aineta aryballos Apollo of Cyrene Archangel ivory Arcisate Treasure Armento Rider Arundel Head Asclepius of Milos Barber Cup and Crawford Cup Bassae Frieze Beaurains Treasure Blacas Cameo Boscoreale Treasure Boy with Thorn Braganza Brooch Bronze head of Hypnos Burgon vase Bursa Treasure Campo Iemini Venus Carthage Treasure Caubiac Treasure Chaourse Treasure Chatsworth Head Chatuzange Treasure Choiseul-Gouffier Apollo Demeter of Knidos Dionysus Sardanapalus Elgin Amphora Elgin Marbles Esquiline Treasure Euphorbos plate Farnese Diadumenos Guilford Puteal Harpy Tomb Herculean Sarcophagus of Genzano Isis Tomb Jennings Dog Lion of Knidos Lycurgus Cup Macmillan aryballos Mâcon Treasure Mainz Gladius Meroë Head Minoan Bull-leaper Nereid Monument Oscan Tablet Papyri of Oxyrhynchus 84 85 102 103 Paramythia Hoard Pericles bust Petelia Gold Tablet Piranesi Vase Portland Vase Priene dedicatory inscription Priene edict inscription San Sosti Axe-Head Sant'Angelo Muxaro Patera Sarcophagus of Seianti Hanunia Tlesnasa Satala Aphrodite Stony Stratford Hoard Strangford Apollo Tomb of Payava Townley collection Antinous Caryatid Discobolus Hadrian Vase Venus Uerdingen Hoard Vaison Diadumenos Warren Cup Xanten Horse-Phalerae
Middle East	Ain Sakhri figurine Assyrian lion weights Balawat Gates Blacas ewer Uruk Trough Blau Monuments Palmer Cup Standard of Ur Ram in a Thicket Lyres of Ur Tell al-'Ubaid Copper Lintel White Obelisk Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III Kition Necropolis Phoenician inscriptions Burney Relief Complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir Tablet of Shamash Statue of Idrimi Babylonian Map of the World Rassam cylinder Cylinders of Nabonidus Cyrus Cylinder Flood tablet (Gilgamesh) Jar of Xerxes I Library of Ashurbanipal Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal Oxus Treasure Taylor Prism Lachish reliefs Babylonian Chronicles Ur Box inscription Kurkh Monoliths Antiochus cylinder Nimrud ivories Phoenician metal bowls
Prehistory and Europe	Boxwood altar Franks Casket Holy Thorn Reliquary Hoxne Hoard Lewis chessmen Lindow Man Mildenhall Treasure Ringlemere Cup Royal Gold Cup Seax of Beagnoth Sutton Hoo Sutton Hoo helmet Sutton Hoo purse-lid Swimming Reindeer Hedwig glass Vindolanda Tablets Lampsacus Treasure
Prints and Drawings	Dürer's Rhinoceros Epifania I Modi Isabella Brant The Ancient of Days The Disasters of War The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies Triumphal Arch
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Discovery

Description

Buddhism in China

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References

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