Standing Buddha with the gesture of "Calming the Ocean"

Southeast Asian Collection

Accession Nr.: 56.89.1
Type: sculpture; religious or cult object; lacquers
Date of production:
19 − 20th century
Place of production:
Materials/Techniques: wood, lacquer, gilt, with mirror-, and multicoloured glass inlay
Dimensions: height: 54.5 cm
This gilded, slender, standing Buddha figure, with his right hand raised in the characteristic "ocean-calming-gesture" (Skt. abhaja-mudra), greets the viewer. Originally depicted with the same gesture, the complementary left hand is now broken off.

The gesture, also known as a hand-holding to calm the sea or waves, is traditionally associated with one of the Buddha's famous deeds, the stemming of the flood of the Neranyjara River.