Detail of a gold statue of a Qidan Apsaras

Detail of a remarkable hammered gold statue of the female spirit Apsaras, from the Liao dynasty, 907 to 1125 A.D. The figure is wearing a crown and is seated cross-legged on the triple lotus flower throne with her hands pressed together in an anjali mudra gesture.

She is surrounded by two coiled dragons, and a triple nimbus is at her back. A pin on the back of the piece suggests that it was an ornament for a funerary hat.

This is an amazingly complex and almost rococo style statue.

GENGHIS KHAN: TREASURES OF INNER MONGOLIA was organized and circulated by the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.

Credits: Photographer: Kong Qun. Source: Collection of the Zhelimu League Museum

Caption source: Adam T. Kessler (1994) Empires Beyond the Great Wall: The Heritage of Genghis Khan. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Adapted from p. 108.

Image source: Photo CD 6315 3021 1433, Image # 005