The Birth of the Buddha

Nepal

Not on view

At lower right Maya reaches up to grasp the branches of a tree and the Buddha emerges from her side. At lower left, the gods Indra and the four-headed Brahma receive the child. The Buddha appears a second time, standing atop a stack of jeweled lotus flowers, marking the miraculous event of his first steps and bath. Such mosaic panels were placed in personal shrines and temples. The density of precious stones in this composition is astonishing and speaks to the widespread practice of donating jewelry at sacred centers. This example is one of the most elaborate of its type to survive.

The Birth of the Buddha, Mosaic set in a gilt-silver framework with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, garnets, quartz, pearls, amber, coral, lapis lazuli, turquoise, and semiprecious stones , Nepal

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.

The Birth of the Buddha, Mosaic set in a gilt-silver framework with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, garnets, quartz, pearls, amber, coral, lapis lazuli, turquoise, and semiprecious stones , Nepal
The Birth of the Buddha, Mosaic set in a gilt-silver framework with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, garnets, quartz, pearls, amber, coral, lapis lazuli, turquoise, and semiprecious stones , Nepal

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.