One of the Museum's most treasured works of art is getting a little check up. The Seated Guanyin Bodhisattva is possibly the best-preserved and most magnificent sculpture from the Liao Dynasty (907-1125)of Chinese Buddhist art.
The sculpture sits majestically in the Chinese Temple Room which was researched thoroughly a few years back. You can read more about that here.
As part of a research grant from the Mellon Foundation, the Guanyin will be examined, sampled and tested as necessary to understand the decorative history and determine what is the best way to preserve it for the future. The actual examining will take place over the next few weeks.
The Guanyin has always been one of my favorite art works in our collection. I'm glad to know it will be around for many more years.