Head of Guanyin
late Northern Qi/Sui dynasty, late 6th century
- Medium
- Marble with traces of metal fittings at crown
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Dimensions
- 68.6 × 43.2 × 45.7 cm (27 1/16 × 17 1/16 × 18 in.)
- Culture
- China
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago, Arts of Asia
- Credit line
- Samuel M. Nickerson Collection
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Art Institute of Chicago
About this work
The benign, altruistic aspect of Buddhism is expressed in this beautifully sculpted marble head of the bodhisattva Guanyin (Sanskrit: Avalokitesvara). The miniature image of the Buddha known as Amitabha (Amituo), depicted in the crown, is clear indication of the bodhisattva's identity. Certain features of this head are shared with other Buddhist icons: the concave forehead circle (urna) is an auspicious mark from which wisdom radiates; the elongated earlobes allude to the aristocratic Indian custom of wearing heavy earrings, and thereby to the Buddha's early life as an Indian prince.
This majestic head, which was severed from a monumental standing figure, characterizes the finest sculpture made in far northern China in the late sixth century. The fine-grain white marble from this area was well suited to rounded, smoothly polished surfaces and austere, idealized images. Serene benevolence emanates from Guanyin's gentle, meditative expression (somewhat altered by later recutting of the pupils of the eyes).
Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0
