ANCIENT REGION OF GANDHARA, 2ND-3RD CENTURY

The present frieze depicts Buddha Shakyamuni and Maitreya raising their right hands in abhayamudra, the gesture of reassurance and safety. Both figures are ornately robed in their respective dhoti, displaying the naturalistic attention to drapery characteristic of the Gandharan period that persisted from earlier Graeco-Roman influences in the region. The relief shows Maitreya accompanied by a young, unidentified ascetic while Vajrapani, identified by the thunderbolt in his left hand, stands directly behind Buddha, looking over his shoulder. Maitreya is regarded as the future Buddha, and as such, the present relief depicts Buddha Shakyamuni, the present Buddha, alongside the future Buddha, reassuringly presenting both the security of the present era and projecting future prosperity and peace in the era of Maitreya.