Head of Buddha, c. 570, Northern Qi dynasty (550-577), Hebei province, northern Xiangtangshan caves, South cave. Limestone, 62.2 x 54.6 cm. Gift of C. T. Loo 1923.97 © The Cleveland Museum of Art 

This colossal Buddha head is from the Northern Xiangtangshan's South Cave, which is shaped like a stupa with a domed roof and a porch in front.

At the Xiangtangshan Buddhist sites in Hebei province, cave-temple construction and image making were supported by the Northern Qi imperial court and nobility. Under the constant shadow of political uncertainty and the theory of the "Law of the Decadence" (or mofa, the deterioration of the True Law after the historical Buddha’s attainment of nirvana), the Buddhist faith was embraced as the ideal for rulership. The Buddha’s smile offers reassurance and consolation.