Object Description
Ca. AD 200-400
A lovely Gandharan schist head of Buddha, with characteristic topknot (Ushnisha) and elongated, pendular ears. His forehead is ornamented with an urna and his heavy-lidded eyes are half closed. Facial features are well-formed, with small, fine lips, an aquiline nose, and a prominent chin. The back is rough and unfinished, suggesting this piece was originally placed against a wall.
Gandhara was an ancient region in the Peshawar basin in the northwest of the ancient Indian subcontinent. The Kushan period (Ca. AD 75-451) of Gandharan art, to which this head belongs, is considered the golden age of artistic production in the area. For further discussion on Gandharan art, see Jongeward, D. 2019, Buddhist Art Of Gandhara in the Ashmolean Museum. Oxford, Oxford University Press. Cf. Bonhams, Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Art, New York, 22 March 2022, Lot 301. This item is mounted on a custom-made stand.
Size: L: 145mm / W: 90mm ; 3.22kg