A GREY SCHIST FIGURE OF A STANDING BUDDHA
NORTHWESTERN INDIA, GANDHARA, 2nd/ 3rd CENTURY
£12,600
Auction: Islamic Art | Lots 1 to 66 | 12 June at 10am
Description
finely carved with cascading folds of fabric, face partially missing from the bottom of the left chin to the upper left cheek, pair of heavy lidded eyes, centred by a raised urna, the hair in wavy lock over the prominent ushnisha, mounted
Dimensions
55.9cm (22in) high
Provenance
Private French Collection, acquired from the Le Breton Gallery in the late 1960s.
Accompanied by a French cultural property passport no. 188247.
Footnote
Note:
This finely carved stone statue depicts the Buddha, clad in cascading folds of fabric, clinging lightly to the contours of his body; particular attention has been given to the hair and face, and his heavy-lidded eyes emanate a sense of serenity and benevolence. This piece and the following lot represent beautiful examples of the Graeco-Buddhist style; such statues were commonly seen in the religious precints of Gandhara, the birthplace of some of the most iconic and important works of Buddhist art.
Ancient Gandhara, nestled in the snowy speaks and lush valleys of the Hindu Kush, was a meeting place between East and West. The region’s strategic position encouraged successive waves of foreign invaders, whose cultures were aptly adopted and re-contextualised by the local population. This dynamic multiculturalism brought forth sculpture of incredible sophistication, melding the complex nontheistic world of Buddhism with the idealism of the Hellenistic art of the Greek settlers, who had been first lead into the region by Alexander the Great. This Indo-Greek population remained in contact with the Mediterranean world throughout antiquity, and through them the precepts of Buddhism became known to philosophers like Phyrro and Onesicritus, and even to early Chuch Fathers like Clement of Alexandria. This syncretic relationship also produced the first anthropomorphic depictions of the Buddha – who had previously been represented only in symbols, like the Bodhi tree or the empty chair – and so represents an important turning point in the history of Asian art, the impact of which would spread as far as Thailand and Japan. As the Dalai has put it:
‘One of the distinguishing features of the Gandharan school of art that emerged in north-west India is that it has been clearly influenced by the naturalism of the Classical Greek style. Thus, while these images still convey the inner peace that results from putting the Buddha’s doctrine into practice, they also give us an impression of people who walked and talked and slept, much as we do…These figures are inspiring because they do not onely depict the goal, but also the sense that people like us can achieve it if we try.’
For a very similar figure and pose, originally found in Gandhara and attributed to Kushan period 200-450 AD, on display in the Victoria and Albert Museum, see inv. no. IS. 70-1949.