
Mark Rasmussen
International Director
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International Director
犍陀羅 二/三世紀 片岩燃燈佛授記圖
Breathing life into the composition, Dipankara Buddha is carved with an elegant sway, as Indra's robes descend whimsically around his ankles to reveal his taught gluteus - the two representing an illuminating blend of Indian and Greco-Roman sculptural leitmotifs. The scene depicts what appears to be the most popular Jataka tale within the Gandharan archeological record. Here, the first of Shakyamuni's previous incarnations, a young Brahman named Sumati, is holding the obligatory Brahmanic water pot to Dipankara Buddha's right . He has gone to great lengths to shower the Buddha with a cluster of lotuses held in his upraised hand, impossible to find after the local king bought up all flower stalls for the official preparations of Dipankara Buddha's visit. For further discussion of the narrative, see Anasua Das in R.C. Sharma (ed.), Buddhism and Gandhara Art, New Delhi, 2004, pp.108-16.
Provenance
J.C. Moreau-Gobard, Paris, 1963
Collection of Dr. and Mrs. Cecil Y. Lang
Sotheby's, New York, 21 & 22 March 1990, lot 199
Sotheby's, New York, 21 March 2002, lot 3
Private American Collection