Peacock King of Wisdom

Gilt Mahamayuri, the Peacock King of Wisdom is a 600-year-old gilt bronze Buddhist statue from the Ming Dynasty’s Xuande reign (1426–1435), now housed in Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Ethnologisches Museum. Gilt Mahamayuri, the Peacock King of Wisdom has three faces and eight arms, riding a peacock—a design blending Han and Tibetan Buddhist styles (Han versions typically have one face and four arms; Tibetan versions rarely feature the deity riding a peacock). Its crown and jewelry are finely chiseled, and the peacock’s feathers are depicted with realistic detail. Crafted with the peak bronze-gilding techniques of the Ming Dynasty, this statue showcases the high skill of ancient Chinese metalworkers. As one of the earliest Tantric Buddhist deities (a later branch of Indian Buddhism) introduced to China, Gilt Mahamayuri, the Peacock King of Wisdom symbolizes protection from disasters and poison in Chinese Buddhism, holding great popularity among ordinary people. 铜鎏金孔雀明王像是 600 年前明宣德年间（1426-1435）的鎏金铜佛教造像，现藏于柏林民族学博物馆。铜鎏金孔雀明王像呈三面八臂、骑孔雀的造型，融合汉藏佛教风格 —— 汉传孔雀明王多为一面四臂，藏传则鲜见骑孔雀的形象。铜鎏金孔雀明王像的宝冠与璎珞錾刻精细，孔雀翎毛刻画写实，其工艺代表明代铸铜鎏金的巅峰水平，尽显古代金属工匠的高超技艺。作为最早传入中国的印度密教（印度佛教后期分支）神祇之一，铜鎏金孔雀明王像在汉地佛教中是消灾除毒的本尊，在民间颇具影响力。