HUGE GANDHARA FIGURE OF BUDDHA MEETING FOREIGNERS UNDER

C. 100-300 AD. Gandharan. Stunning carved schist stone panel from Gandhara representing Buddha and four attendees. Buddha is presented standing on the right, dressed in an elegant sanghati or mantle, backed by a halo. It is noteworthy that three of the four attendees have clearly foreign features. The tree under which the Buddha reached enlightenment marks the top of the composition. It had been under worship by local villagers, for it was known to be the residence of a nature divinity, who here emerges from the tree and altar to praise the Buddha. Gandhara was an ancient region in the Peshawar basin in the north-west of the ancient Indian subcontinent. The Kushan period (c. 75-451 AD) of Gandharan art, to which this figure belongs, was the golden age of artistic production in the area. Provenance: From an important private London Collection (H.G); previously acquired in Paris in 2006. Formerly in the collection of Alain Kottlar since the 1960s. Size: L:950mm / W:580mm; 50+kg