A Green Schist Frieze of Parinirvana
A Green Schist Frieze of Parinirvana

GANDHARA, 2ND/3RD CENTURY

Details
A Green Schist Frieze of Parinirvana
Gandhara, 2nd/3rd Century
Very finely carved with the sarcophagus at center surrounded by mourners, a small incense altar placed in front at center over an inverted lotus border below, the casket finely detailed with hinges and rosettes
12¾ in. (32.3 cm.) high
Provenance
Julian Sherrier Collection, London, since mid 1970's

Lot Essay

The sarcophagus is surrounded by seven monks flanked by sal trees, some with their hands raised to their heads in a gesture of grief, with Upavana at center holding a flywhisk, a regal emblem in reference to Buddha as a universal monarch. According to the scriptures, Buddha was wrapped in five hundred layers of cloth and placed in a metal coffin; compare with a closely related but less detailed example formerly in the Gai Collection, in H. Ingolt, Gandharan Art in Pakistan, 1957, fig. 144, also illustrated in I. Kurita, Gandharan Art, vol. I, 2003, p. 235, fig. P4-IV; Kurita notes the rarity and exceptional quality of this relief, see p. 333.

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