It is a statue made in the end of the Nara period, using a technique called Mokushin-kanshitsu, in which first the base shape is carved on wood and then the base is coated with kokuso-urusnhi (Japanese lacquer mixed with wood chips, etc.).
木彫りで像の概形を作り、その上に木屑漆（こくそうるし、漆に木粉等を混ぜたもの）を盛り上げて造像する木心乾漆像で、奈良時代末期の作である。