Avalokiteshvara

Bodhisattvas are often depicted standing on either side of a larger image of a seated Buddha, serving as his attendants. This bust of a Bodhisattva from the Indonesian island of Java likely appeared in that context, as indicated by the fly whisk that he holds. In many Asian cultures, fly whisks made of horse- or yak-tail hair were used by servants to wave insects away from their masters, and religious imagery often shows gods attended by fly-whisk bearers.