The bodhisattva Manjushri, sculpture collection Rijksmuseum

Manjushri was venerated in China as one of the first advocates of Buddhism. On Java, he was represented as a young man with bejewelled straps across his chest. This figure’s missing hands may once have made the gesture of turning the wheel of doctrine (dharmacakra mudra): this symbolizes the beginning of the cycle of Buddhist doctrine and enlightenment.