Crowned Buddha in niche, a fragment of a votive stupa

Crowned Buddhas and Stupas The face of the crowned Buddha in this sculpture has been damaged, but his crown and hand gesture (mudra) suggest that this is Vairochana, the Buddha of the central region of the mandala. Although fragmentary, this sculpture was probably one panel from a larger stupa, a monument often built to contain the remains of advanced Buddhist meditators. Stone stupas appear throughout the art of Palaperiod India (eighth–twelfth centuries), and the associated imagery of Vairochana likely contributed to crowned Buddha imagery that appears in Southeast Asia.