Buddha subduing Mara

Thailand

late 19th century

Gilt bronze

Minneapolis Institute of Art

A gilt bronze statue depicts a seated Buddha figure on an ornate, multi-tiered pedestal. The figure is in a meditative pose with hands resting in the lap. This depiction of the Buddha, dressed as a prince and seated atop a carpet on an elaborate throne, would become widespread after King Rama I (r. 1782–1809) defeated Burmese incursions and established the Chakri dynasty, which rules present-day Thailand. Its leaders, like many earlier Southeast Asian kingdoms, styled themselves as universal monarchs, or chakravartins, on religious grounds, just as India’s first Buddhist emperor, Ashoka, had done 2, 000 years earlier. Local elites would emulate the opulent royal sculptures for their own aesthetic and spiritual collecting practices. This phenomenon no doubt influenced industrialist Cha