This lion was once the mount for an image of the bodhisattva Monju Bosatsu (Skt. Mañjuśrī). Its legs are positioned with sublime balance and rendered naturalistically. The muscles swell ever so slightly, as if the lion is poised to pounce. The image is rich with the sense of breathing realism and vitality that characterizes statues of the Kamakura period (1185–1333). It is one of the foremost masterworks of animal statuary in the history of Japanese Buddhist sculpture. 
Audio guide 

This lion was once the mount for an image of the bodhisattva Monju (Skt. Mañjuśrī). Its legs are positioned with sublime balance and rendered naturalistically. The muscles swell ever so slightly, as if the lion is poised to pounce. The image is rich with the sense of breathing realism and vitality that characterizes statues of the Kamakura period (1185–1333). It is one of the foremost masterworks of animal statuary in the history of Japanese Buddhist sculpture.
 
YAMAGUCHI RyusukeEnglish by Mary Lewine 
Buddhist Art Paradise: Jewels of the Nara National Museum. Nara National Museum, 2021.7, p.342, no.110. 

The figure was originally employed as the animal pedestal for a statue of Monju Bosatsu (Skt. Mañjuśrī). The body was painted with blue and the hair was painted with green. The cut gold leaf was streaked on the hair. The figure was well expressed characteristics of the feline beast, such as finely balanced four legs and the accurate angle of the joints, as well as the delicately raised muscle.
 
Shigeki Iwata 
Masterworks from the Nara Buddhist Sculpture Hall at the Nara National Museum. Nara National Museum, 2010, p.138, no.152.