Lama
Tibet. 16th Century.
Bronze and gilding.

From the cut and overall shape of his upper robes he may well belong to the Gelugpa sect of Tibetan Buddhism.
The size and style of the lotus base with its narrow waist, generous petals and unachieved rear, suggests that a Newar from Kathmandu had been the image maker. This style, so popular in Nepal in the 14-15th cent became all the rage in Tibet in the 14-15th cent and slightly thereafter. Taranatha in his large Autobiography refers several times to Newar casters in southern Tibet in the period 1600-1620 and the images they made, he says, were equal in quality to those from India in the Pala period.

Height 10.5cm