A THANGKA DEPICTING BHAISAJYAGURU Western Tibet, circa 1400

Himalayan Art Resources item no. 13070.

Wear, rubbing and losses to pigment overall. 1 mm. pinhole at lower right corner. Scattered areas of cracking to pigment most noticeable in white and yellow pigments, stable. With Tibetan inscription including the Buddhist creed on reverse.
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The Medicine Buddha or Bhaisajyaguru, deep blue in color, is seated in vajraparyankasana atop a double lotus throne at center, with a myrobalan fruit in the extended right hand and a begging bowl filled with amrita in the left. The conical ushnisha is topped with a lotus bud finial, with a floral ornament above each ear. The throne is flanked by an array of graceful elephants and peacocks, two vajra pillars, and the bodhisattvas Suryabhaskara on the left, and Chandrabhaskara on the right, atop lotus thrones. The multiple buddhas in the background are arranged by color in a chevron pattern centered above the central figure.

Compare the tiered architectural rendering, color palette, and chevron patterning of the background figures with another 15th Century thangka depicting Bhaisajyaguru from the Edward Binney III Collection in the San Diego Museum of Art, acc. no. 1990:1470.