GANDHARA, 4TH/5TH CENTURY

The 'third eye' is an exceptional feature in the context of Gandharan art. This is an attribute of Avalokiteshvara, as well as of Shiva; compare with a small Gupta terracotta head with similarly modeled third eye at the Museum für Indische Kunst, Berlin, see H. Härtel and W. Lobo, Schätze Indischer Kunst, 1986, cat. no. 40.