佛像网

尺寸：H. 104.14 cm x W. 41.9 cm x D. 22.9 cm
年代：3-4世纪
质地：片岩鎏金
风格：犍陀罗(古巴基斯坦)
来源：旧金山亚洲艺术博物馆
参阅：外部链接
鉴赏：
在创作印度教和佛教神祇的造像时，艺术家们面临着一个问题：如何让人们能够辨认出不同的神祇。最终，某些特定的身体特征、服饰以及手中所持之物便开始与特定的神祇联系起来。

此处的王子装束表明这尊造像表现的是菩萨。左手所持的水瓶则进一步说明这位菩萨是弥勒。

人们相信，弥勒是一位具大威德的灵性存在，待到时机成熟时，他将以人身降生人间，成为未来的佛陀。尽管这一时期的实际珠宝保存下来的很少，但造像上精致的饰品、项圈、项链和手镯，为我们展示了当时这类珠宝的样貌。请注意项链上长身的半人马（半人半马的生物）。在你身后的独立展墙上，展示着一对年代稍晚的金耳环。

Artists creating images of Hindu and Buddhist deities faced the question of how to make various deities recognizable. Eventually, certain physical features, garments, and objects held in the hand became associated with certain deities.

The princely garments here suggest that this image is of a bodhisattva. The water bottle held in the left hand suggests that this particular bodhisattva is Maitreya.

Maitreya is believed to be a powerful spiritual being who, when the time is right, will be born on earth in human form and become the next Buddha. Though little actual jewelry has survived from this early period, the elaborate ornaments, collar, necklace, and bracelets shown here provide evidence of what such jewelry looked like. Notice on the necklace the long-bodied centaurs (half-man, half-horse creatures). A pair of gold earrings from a slightly later period is displayed on the freestanding wall behind you.