The Buddha Amoghasiddhi, who represents "infallible success," is one of the five Dhyani Buddhas, each of which represents a different aspect of the Buddha's enlightenment. This rare lacquer image is decorated in the ch'iang-chin technique with intricate, incised textile patterns, in-filled with gold leaf. No other early fifteenth-century sculpture in this technique has been previously recorded.

It is documented that the Yung-lo emperor (r. 1403-24) made tribute gifts of sutra covers and other lacquered objects such as this to Tibetan religious leaders and the Japanese shogun in the early 1400s. When this figure was consecrated, objects of ritual importance were placed in a sealed compartment inside the sculpture. X-rays show what appear to be a roll of paper, probably a religious text, a small bead or pearl, and a glass vial, perhaps containing consecrated water, sealed within a compartment in this small Buddhist statue.