Page 6 - Met Museum Ghandara Incense Burner

Figure 1 1 . Sites and trade routes mentioned in the text

primary literary source on this subject, corrobora- De Puma reexamined the bronzes and divided them
tive archaeology of the Egyptian ports of the Red into a Hellenistic group and a group dating to about
Sea is as yet in its early stages.10 However, much is the first century a.d.16 Based on stylistic considera-
known about the fruits of the Red Sea trade, for tions, he suggested that the most superb object in the
imported works of art greatly influenced the style of hoard, the well-known statue of Poseidon (Figure 12),
the Indian art. was made during the third century B.C. and came to
Four major sites, as well as numerous minor ones, India at a later date.17 The Poseidon was probably
show us that Western goods reached India,11 and based on a Hellenistic original of about 340 B.C. by
South Indian archaeological, numismatic, and literary Lysippos. Although the original is no longer extant, it
evidence certainly adds more to the picture.12 copies, including an ex-
Arika- is known from numerous
medu is an actual trading port on the southeast coast ample now in the Pella Museum which came from a
l8
of India,13 while the sites in the west and northwest house destroyed in 168 B.C. (Figure 13). Thus, De
material for our
provide us with comparative study. Puma's study makes it clear that copies of works of art
of
The modern city Kolhapur may be identical with of major quality were imported into India and could
of
ancient Hippokoura, the inland capital King Bale- have been seen throughout the Indian subcontinent
okouros, mentioned in Ptolemy's Geography.1^ group as well as in the Western world.
A
of bronzes which were discovered there at the mound The second group of bronzes is not of the same
of Brahmapuri were first published in 1960 by Karl quality as the Poseidon. As a group, they have been
Khandalavala, who dated many of the objects to the compared to works found at Pompeii, Herculaneum,
second century a.d.15 Subsequently, Richard Daniel and related sites. The production of the bronzes is
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