Preaching Buddha flanked by Avalokitesvara and Maitreya

Description

"The preaching Buddha is seated on a full-blown lotus seat and above his head are heavenly flowers. His two attendants, possibly Bodhisattva Maitreya and Avalokitesvara, stand beside him, each under an umbrella. A lay worshipper appears in a kneeling posture on either side of the lotus seat. They may be identified as Luhasudatta and his wife as described the Divyavadana and in the Vinaya of the Mula Sarvastivadins. The relief, originally surmounted by an umbrella, has a tenon at the bottom. The lotus on which the Buddha is seated is typical to the Gandharan idiom, but what is noteworthy is that the entire pitha has a design of lotus petals.