Padmasambhava Tibet, 1400-1500s bronze with silver, copper, and turquoise inlay 8 5/8 inches (21.9 cm) high Funds from Florence J. Reust in memory of her son, Ralph W. Jacobs 1980.57

Padmasambhava means "lotus-born" and refers to the legend that he was found on a lotus in a lake in Northwest India. He is greatly revered in Tibet as a founder of the Nyingma (Red Hat) order of Buddhism and the country’s first monastery, Samye. He sits here in his customary position on a lotus blossom, easily recognizable in his eagle-feathered cap and with his traditional attributes of dorje thunderbolt, skull cup, and khatvanga staff. The decoration of the robes and the copper and silver on the eyes and lips dramatize this idealized image.


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