Seated Buddha Shakyamuni

I went to the Rubin Museum with my art class last week and we went on a tour that described Buddhist art to us. I want to share the iconography I learned about that is seen in all depictions of Buddha. There is always a top knot which is said to hold his curls and it is called a ushnisha. The gem in between his eyebrows is called an urna and it symbolizes his third eye. The positioning of his fingers and hand convey messages and his hand symbols are called mudras. He has elongated earlobes because he used to be a prince and wear heavy earrings. Lastly, his feet are usually crossed and that is called the lotus position. Now you will be able to spot a Buddha before even reading the title of an artwork!

P.S. Baruch students get free admission into the Rubin Museum and its only 15 minutes away from Baruch.