Buddha Sakyamuni

The base of the image is as compelling as the figure itself. The upper and lower horizontal registers of this stepped base are incised with a flower motif and the eight auspicious symbols, respectively. Between these sections, intricate grillwork features a figure on bended knee at the central projection. This figure, dressed in Central Asian-style garb with a long tunic billowing outward on either side, raises his arms as if supporting the structure. He is framed by two ornate pillars. The detailed grillwork continues with two lions positioned on either side of the central projection, each set back in its own section. The design of this base, with its Central Asian-like figure at the center, resonates with sculptural bases from 8th to 12th-century Western trans-Himalayan Buddhist art.

The long inscription incised on the back of the throne base provides the names of the patrons and the artist, as well as the purpose of the commission. The first line describes the Buddha as the wise, skillful, and compassionate one, born into the Sakya clan, with a body like Mount Meru adorned in gold. The second line names the patrons: a woman, Norby Gyelmo, and three men, Chipa Sherab, Apa Gyeltsen, and the "tenth master," Dorje Dradul. According to the inscription, the sculpture was "manufactured for the sake of obtaining Buddhahood after this so-called 'inferior' life." It concludes with a dedication of the virtue gained from the statue’s creation to all beings, so they may attain Buddhahood quickly. The artist is identified as Kun dga’ chos, "the lineage holder of skillful artisans."

The throne base design, along with the silver and copper inlay work, suggests that a craftsman from Western Tibet may have created this piece. The term "A pha," used in the inscription to identify one of the patrons, may be a Western Tibetan regionalism meaning "noble one," further supporting a Western Tibetan provenance.