This painted Bodhisattva—"enlightened being"—on gilded clay hails from seventh-century Fondukistan, a medieval settlement and Buddhist monastery in Afghanistan. The artifact was recovered in a special inventory project led by National Geographic and partly supported by the U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities.

Read the story about the Afghanistan museum treasures.

See today's top stories from National Geographic News.

Photo gallery by Chelsea Lane-Miller