Rattanakosin Gilt Bronze Sculpture of the Buddha Seated

Seated on a terraced, ornate “cushion” is the serenely elegant Buddha wearing a corrugated headdress with a pointed central appendage (ushnisha). The body displays a combination of sensuality in the finely modelled limbs, and austerity in the straight back posture and other- worldly expression of the face. The artist has achieved a sense of perfect balance in this sculpture, recalling the Buddha’s exhortation to harmonize the material world with the world of the spirit.

Rattanakosin came into being when King Rama I ascended the throne in 1782. He decided to establish the new capital on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River for better security from Burma. King Rama I was determined to build a new capital to revive the glory and splendor of old Ayutthaya. The new capital was proclaimed and hence began the Rattanakosin era or Bangkok period under the glorious reign of the Chakri Kings.