Bodhisattva of Wisdom (Manjushri) (1400s): Art, History and Details

Bodhisattva of Wisdom (Manjushri) (1400s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The youthful, princely form of Manjushri can be identified by the horizontal book on the lotus over his left shoulder. The book refers to the Buddhist teachings of ultimate knowledge (Prajnaparamita), and this bodhisattva is the male embodiment of the wisdom gained from understanding them. Manjushri is of special importance for Buddhists of Nepal, called Newari, who credit him with draining the water from Kathmandu Valley.

Object facts

• Title: Bodhisattva of Wisdom (Manjushri)
• Date: 1400s
• Culture: Nepal
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: gilded copper
• Dimensions: Overall: 42.4 x 16.5 cm (16 11/16 x 6 1/2 in.)
• Collection: Nepalese Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 1956.8

Collection credit

The Norweb Collection

Further reading listed by the museum

• The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.