A Gray Schist Figure of Shakyamuni Buddha Ancient Region of Gandhara, 2nd/3rd Century

The Gandharan period marks the emergence of images of the Buddha, a time in which some of the finest examples of this subject were created. Blending both Hellenic styles and Indic philosophies, the image of Shakyamuni Buddha, particularly of him seated in meditation, is the prototype of an iconographic tradition that traveled the lengths of the Asian continent for centuries.

The Greco-Roman influence is unmistakable in the layered folds of the robe, reminiscent of the garments depicted in statuary from ancient Greece. The rippling, flowing, fabric falling over the shoulders across the torso and legs, fanning out over the cushion, hint both at the musculature of the body and the stillness of the Buddha as he rests in meditative equilibrium. Here, the Classical influences, taken from depictions of Apollo and late Roman Republican statuary, lend an elegance to the physiognomy of the Buddha. (W. Zwalf, A Catalogue of the Gandhara Sculpture in the British Museum, London, 1996, p. 41). The iconography, however, is purely Indian. The distinctive marks of the Buddha, the rising ushnisha and urna at the forehead and halo behind, as well as the lion pillars below are all signs of his noble birth. Not unlike the Greco-Roman gods who wielded their power over various aspects of the cosmos, the Buddha is represented here as the chakravartin, or universal monarch, ruling the world by turning the wheel of Dharma.

Other examples of this kind are illustrated in H. Ingholt, Gandharan Art in Pakistan, New York, 1957, pl. 235 and I. Kurita, Gandharan Art, vol. II, Tokyo, 1990, p. 75, pl. 193.