Standing figure of the Buddha Sakyamuni

Standing figure with stylised hair curls, skull protuberance (one of the 32 auspicious marks of Buddhahood) and 'wet drapery' defining the form of the body underneath. From the Gupta period, credited with creating the quintessential Buddha type. The style epitomises the culmination of the early period in Indian art and marks a watershed in terms of both Indian stylistic development and the spread of Indian cultural influence throughout Asia. The portable scale of the object suggests it may have been for processional/ritual use.