COLLECTION NAME:
The AMICA Library
mediaCollectionId
AMICO~1~1
The AMICA Library
Collection
true
AMICA ID:
ASIA.1979.042
amicoid
ASIA.1979.042
AMICA ID
false
AMICA Library Year:
1998
aly
1998
AMICA Library Year
false
Object Type:
Sculpture
oty
Sculpture
Object Type
false
Creator Nationality:
Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Pakistani; Kashmiri
crc
Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Pakistani; Kashmiri
Creator Nationality
false
Creator Name-CRT:
Kashmiri or Pakistani
crt
Kashmiri or Pakistani
Creator Name-CRT
false
Title:
Buddha Shakyamuni
otn
Buddha Shakyamuni
Title
false
View:
Full view
rid
Full view
View
false
Creation Date:
8th-9th century
oct
8th-9th century
Creation Date
false
Creation Start Date:
700
ocs
700
Creation Start Date
false
Creation End Date:
899
oce
899
Creation End Date
false
Materials and Techniques:
Ivory
omd
Ivory
Materials and Techniques
false
Creation Place:
Kashmir or northern Pakistan
ocp
Kashmir or northern Pakistan
Creation Place
false
Dimensions:
H. 3 7/8 in. (9.8 cm); W. 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm)
met
H. 3 7/8 in. (9.8 cm); W. 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm)
Dimensions
false
AMICA Contributor:
Asia Society
oon
Asia Society
AMICA Contributor
false
Owner Location:
New York, New York, USA
oop
New York, New York, USA
Owner Location
false
ID Number:
1979.042
ooa
1979.042
ID Number
false
Credit Line:
Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection
ooc
Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection
Credit Line
false
Rights:
orl
<a href="http://www.asiasociety.org"target="_new">http://www.asiasociety.org</a>
Rights
false
Context:
This small ivory relief exhibits the pronounced facial features that some scholars suggest indicate a provenance of northern Pakistan--specifically the Swat Valley region--rather than Kashmir. However, several sculptures of this type are known, believed to have been used to decorate wooden shrines or stupas, and most are considered to be from 8th- or 9th-century Kashmir. The attenuated torso and the stylized, nearly vertical drapery folds here suggest a 9th-century date. The posture and gesture of the central figure of the Buddha on this deeply carved relief indicate he is in meditation. Two snarling lions stand beneath the Buddha, while numerous small figures are seated to each side. The two figures at the top have the emaciated bodies of ascetics. All of the subsidiary figures sit in relaxed postures, and most of them have a beltlike meditation strap (yogapatta) tied around the waist and one knee.
Most reliefs from Kashmir illustrate scenes from the life of the Historical Buddha. Two interpretations may be suggested for the iconography of this one. It has been identified as an image of Shakyamuni meditating prior to his preaching of the Lotus Sutra (Saddharmapundarika Sutra), but it might represent the visit of the Hindu god Indra to Shakyamuni while he was meditating in a cave because similar ivories with accompanying images of Indra are also known. While it is not possible to identify the precise scene represented in this sculpture, the emphasis on certain moments in the life of the Buddha found in such ivory sculptures exemplifies the way in which earlier themes were preserved in the art of Kashmir.
cxd
This small ivory relief exhibits the pronounced facial features that some scholars suggest indicate a provenance of northern Pakistan--specifically the Swat Valley region--rather than Kashmir. However, several sculptures of this type are known, believed to have been used to decorate wooden shrines or stupas, and most are considered to be from 8th- or 9th-century Kashmir. The attenuated torso and the stylized, nearly vertical drapery folds here suggest a 9th-century date. The posture and gesture of the central figure of the Buddha on this deeply carved relief indicate he is in meditation. Two snarling lions stand beneath the Buddha, while numerous small figures are seated to each side. The two figures at the top have the emaciated bodies of ascetics. All of the subsidiary figures sit in relaxed postures, and most of them have a beltlike meditation strap (<I>yogapatta</I>) tied around the waist and one knee.<P>Most reliefs from Kashmir illustrate scenes from the life of the Historical Buddha. Two interpretations may be suggested for the iconography of this one. It has been identified as an image of Shakyamuni meditating prior to his preaching of the <I>Lotus Sutra</I> (<I>Saddharmapundarika Sutra</I>), but it might represent the visit of the Hindu god Indra to Shakyamuni while he was meditating in a cave because similar ivories with accompanying images of Indra are also known. While it is not possible to identify the precise scene represented in this sculpture, the emphasis on certain moments in the life of the Buddha found in such ivory sculptures exemplifies the way in which earlier themes were preserved in the art of Kashmir.</P>
Context
false
Related Document Description:
Asia Society. Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection. New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 22.
rdd
Asia Society. <I>Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection.</I> New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 22.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Lee, Sherman E. Asian Art: Selections from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd--Part II. New York: Asia Society, 1975, pp. 10, 11, 20.
rdd
Lee, Sherman E. <I>Asian Art: Selections from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd--Part II</I>. New York: Asia Society, 1975, pp. 10, 11, 20.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Lerner, Martin. The Flame and the Lotus: Indian and Southeast Asian Art from the Kronos Collection. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Harry N. Abrams, 1984, p. 77, note 2.
rdd
Lerner, Martin. <I>The Flame and the Lotus: Indian and Southeast Asian Art from the Kronos Collection.</I> New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Harry N. Abrams, 1984, p. 77, note 2.
Related Document Description
false
Related Image Identifier Link:
ASIA.1979.042.a.tif
ril
ASIA.1979.042.a.tif
Related Image Identifier Link
false