Head of a Bodhisattva

Currently not on view

Head of a Bodhisattva

Mid- 2nd to early 3rd century

Artist/maker unknown, Pakistani or Afghani

Well before 326 B.C., when Alexander the Great's Greek army conquered areas north and west of India (parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan), cultural and commercial ties had been established between the Gandhara region of Pakistan-Afghanistan and the ancient Mediterranean world. Communication between these areas flourished throughout the following millennium. This Buddhist sculpture of the Gandhara region shows Greco-Roman influence in a number of characteristics, including the facial features, heavy naturalistic drapery, and ornaments. The hair of the image finds its prototype in a Greco-Roman image of the god Apollo, the so-called Apollo Belvedere-type. This head probably belonged to an over-life-sized standing or seated figure of a Bodhisattva (one who has reached perfection but postpones his own liberation to help others).

Currently not on view

Object Details

Title:

Head of a Bodhisattva

Date:

Mid- 2nd to early 3rd century

Artist:

Artist/maker unknown, Pakistani or Afghani

Medium:

Phyllite

Dimensions:

13 3/4 x 9 5/8 x 10 1/2 inches (34.9 x 24.4 x 26.7 cm)

Classification:

Sculpture

Credit Line:

Purchased with the Annual Membership Fund, 1921

Accession Number:

1921-38-5

Geography:

Probably made in Pakistan, South Asia, Asia or made in Afghanistan, Asia

Context:

Dynasty: Kushan Dynasty (c. 100 BCE-c. 300 CE)

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Currently not on view