Such votive steles dedicated to Amitayus, the deity of long life, were made in high quantities in the Qing dynasty, particularly during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. Most extant examples were made in terracotta, and known as tsa tsa; the present figure is distinguished from the countless known examples by being cast in bronze and lavishly gilt. Only a few such examples are known, and were often incised with inscriptions in the four languages of the dynasty - Manchu, Mongolian, Tibetan and Chinese, although the present example does not bear an inscription.