Ekadashamukha (Eleven-Headed Avalokiteshvara)

13th - 18th century

With eleven heads and six arms, Avalokiteshvara, a bodhisattva, is posed here so that all of his body parts can act in concert to alleviate the suffering of his devotees. His iconographic form has the thin waist and full hips seen in much Himalayan statuary. Attributes of a prince abound: crowns, jewels, and intricate dhoti (trousers) incised with the comprehensive pattern of an elaborate textile. The penetrating expressions of the bodhisattva’s eleven heads vacillate between serene and fierce.

Gilded bronze

19 5/16 x 9 1/4 in. (49.09 x 23.5 cm)

Overall h.: 21 1/2 in.

Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection

70.30

Now on view at the Asian Art Museum

Resources

Exhibition HistoryNew York, NY, Asia House Gallery, Nepal, Sept. 25 - Nov. 23, 1975; Los Angeles, CA, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Dec. 17, 1975 - Jan. 25, 1976; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum, Feb. 11 - Mar. 21, 1976

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, "Documents International: Eleven Heads Are Better than One: Sixth Graders Connect with SAM", April 1, 1999 - April 2, 2000

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Discovering Buddhist Art - Seeking the Sublime", July 9, 2003 - June 3, 2005

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, "Luminous: The Art of Asia", October 13, 2011 - January 8, 2012

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Boundless: Stories of Asian Art, Feb. 8, 2020 - ongoing [on view beginning July 28, 2022].

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