Page 7 - Christies DEVOTION IN STONE Gandharan Art From a Japanese Collection Sept 23 2020 NYC

Map of the Gandhara region, with modern political borders indicated.

they brought political stability to these areas. The Kushan from examples of Classical Greek sculptures of statesman
Period (1st Century BCE - 3rd Century CE) is considered the and orators (lot 613).
golden age of Gandharan Buddhist Art, when Buddhism
With the increase in patronage of Buddhism, one sees a
flourished in this region. Under the Kushans, many new
sharp increase in the construction of Buddhist monasteries
Buddhist sites were founded in Gandhara during the 2nd
in this region from about the 4th to early 5th century CE.
century CE, most of them organized around a monastery
Most of the extant stupas, image shrines, and monasteries
and a stupa. The stupas were decorated with narrative
as well as representational sculptures of Buddha may be
relief panels recounting the life of the Buddha (lot 624),
attributed to this period. By the mid-5th century, patronage
bodhisattvas (lot 612) and aniconic symbols representing
within Gandhara proper declined dramatically, likely as a
the Buddha (lot 618).
result of Hun incursions into the region and a shift in trade
The earliest images of the Buddha and bodhisattvas routes favoring the area of Nagarahara in Afghanistan,
began to appear from the beginning of the 3rd century which experienced a corresponding period of prosperity.
CE. This shift has often been seen as marking a transition This led to new constructions in Afghan Buddhist sites
in Buddhist ideology from the earlier Hinayana schools, between the 5th and 8th centuries CE, including the
which emphasized the veneration of relics, to later great Buddhas of Bamiyan. The rich Buddhist traditions
Mahayana practices centered on the veneration of images of greater Gandhara finally came to an end around the 8th
of bodhisattvas and cosmic Buddhas. The collection to 9th century after a series of invasions that introduced a
on offer includes examples mainly from the Mahayana new religion, Islam, that supplanted and eventually eclipsed
phase of Buddhism, with some of the finest sculptural Buddhist practice in the region.
representations of Buddha and bodhisattvas from the
Gandhara region. The seated triad of Buddha Shakyamuni The collection on offer is a group of magnificent Gandharan
flanked by Bodhisattvas is one of the most well-known works of art that are coming to the market for the first
and iconic examples of Gandharan art that is in the public time. All are published in the seminal two volume tome,
domain (lot 609). The underlining feature of Gandharan Gandharan Art, vols. I & II by Isao Kurita, the leading
art was its cosmopolitan nature with the amalgamation of dealer and connoisseur of Gandharan art. Many have
Greek and Roman artistic modes with strains of Scythian, been exhibited at various institutions in Japan and further
Iranian and other traditions, combined with a strongly Indic abroad and have been part of this private collection for
orientation. The height of this coming together of various three decades. We are grateful to Eco Ring, Inc. for
artistic modes is brilliantly displayed in the superbly carved enabling Christie’s to bring one of the greatest collections
figure of the standing bodhisattva that draws inspiration of Gandharan masterpieces to the market.