Gilt-bronze Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin)

Northern Wei period, inscribed with date corresponding to 516

Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, also known as Guanyin, was one of the most popular deities in early Buddhist culture. Finely cast and incised with petal and flame details and covered with rich gilding, the forty-eight character inscription on the back indicates that this figure was commissioned in the early sixth century by a Buddhist devotee.