A GREY SCHIST FIGURE OF BUDDHA SHAKYAMUNI

Description:

Pakistan, Ancient Region of Gandhara, 2nd/ 3rd cent.
H. 57 cm (o.S.)
Sculpted in standig posture with the left knee slightly thrusted forward, both arms broken, wearing a monastic garment including a mantle covering both shoulders and falling down in various concentric pleats his body, on metal stand.
European private collection, acquired from Stephan Grusenmeyer in 2004
The art of Gandhara in what is now northwestern Pakistan and Afghanistan emerged under Kushan rule as an encounter between Indian religiosity and Hellenistic-Roman formal tradition. This combination gave rise to the classic image of Buddha Shakyamuni: calm, balanced, and depicted in a finely modeled monk's robe. The torso, carved from gray-blue slate, probably originates from a monastery complex dating from the 2nd-3rd century. The dense, sculpturally rendered robe falls in deep, rhythmic folds over the body, allowing the volume of the torso to be felt beneath. The V-shaped drapery over the chest and stomach is typical, a hallmark of Gandharan workshops. Even without a head and hands, the quiet dignity of the figure remains palpable. The closed posture, the harmonious balance, and the careful workmanship of the surface convey the inner composure of the Enlightened One. Compared to the warmer, more body-conscious stylistic tradition of Mathurā, Gandhara appears more austere and strongly influenced by classicism. The torso exemplifies this synthesis of Eastern spirituality and Western formal ideals - a fragment that, despite its incompleteness, impressively preserves the calm and sublimity of the Buddha - Chipped, partly rest.