(Guanyin)
Shanxi province
Northern Qi dynasty (550-77), ca. 550-60
Sandstone with pigments

Large-scale sculptures of bodhisattvas wearing extraordinary
jewelry epitomize certain stylistic and iconographic innovations
in Chinese sculpture from the second half of the sixth century.
The astonishing jeweled harness suspended from the neck of the
bodhisattva seen here falls in two long strands of peal-like
clusters and multifaceted beads. Some elements of the harness,
such as the triangular pendants, can be traced to Chinese culture.
Others, such as the pearl cabochons, derive from Central Asian traditions.

The appearance of such elaborately adorned figural sculptures,
which later became standard in Chinese Buddhist art, attests
to a growing devotion to the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara in the
second half of the sixth century. It is possible that the jewels
refer to a passage in the Lotus Sutra in which the historical
Buddha Shakyamuni and another bodhisattva extol Avalokiteshvara's
great compassion. At some point in the text, Avalokiteshvara is
given a precious pearl necklace as a symbol of his benevolence.