The production in India of bronze Hindu images reached its height during the Chola dynasty (880-1279). Buddhist images dating from this period are less common, but as evidenced by this standing Buddha, they were made by the same lost-wax technique and given the same finely finished surface. Like their Hindu counterparts, Buddhist statues were carried in public procession during temple festivals. According to an inscription on this statue, it was commissioned by members of a metal-workers' guild linked to a temple at Nagapattinam on India's southeast coast.