A gray schist round stupa base

GANDHARA, 2ND/3RD CENTURY

Details

A gray schist round stupa base
Gandhara, 2nd/3rd century
Carved with a frieze of putti alternating between frontal and profile depictions, carrying an undulating wreath with pendant sashes, punctuated by flower blossoms, capped by a running dentil motif
11 in. (27.9 cm.) wide

Provenance

Private Collection, acquired in 1995

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Lot Essay

Undulating garland friezes on stupa bases are sometimes interpreted as fertility imagery, especially when associated with plump nude figures, such as those depicted here; for similar examples, see W. Zwalf, A Catalogue of the Gandhara Sculpture in the British Museum, vol. I, 1996, pp. 276-80 and vol. II, fig. nos. 414-26.

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