Southeast Asia, Thailand, ca. 1900. A weathered stone head of the Buddha with a serene, downcast face, elongated earlobes and tightly curled hair, mounted on a black stand.

The elongated earlobes recall the heavy earrings the Buddha wore as Prince Siddhartha before renouncing his worldly life, and the gentle smile expresses inner peace. Source: Gump’s, San Francisco, 2004.