This is a gilt-bronze seated sculpture of the Bodhisattva Maitreya. Dressed in jeweled bodhisattva outlook, he wears a crown and earrings in lotus shape. His keyura and clothings are simplistic yet elegant. Two lotus flowers grow beside his arms. Seated in lotus posture, his hands form the dharmacakra mudra in front of his chest. Maitreya is the future Buddha, who is to succeed the Buddha Shakyamuni in the next Buddhist cosmological era. Since Maitreya would not assume Buddhahood until then, he retains his jeweled bodhisattva outlook. As a guardian of the Buddhist doctrines (dharma), his hands are often depicted to form a preaching hand gesture (dharmachakra mudra). This sculpture is unexpectedly heavy compared with other gilt-bronze sculptures, thus it is reasonable to presume that it is carved out from an existing bronze bar or Vajra of exceptional quality, unlike the conventional lost-wax casting method.