RARE GANDHARA GOLD GILDED SCHIST STONE FIGURE OF SEATED

C. 100 - 300 AD. Gandhara. Stunning seated schist figure of Buddha atop a square platform ornamented with floral motifs. The facial features are carefully modelled, with heavily-lidded eyes, a small nose and closed lips; the face is framed by hair in a characteristic topknot (Ushnisha) and large, pendulous ears. His hands are crossed in front of the body. Traces of gilding are still visible. 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 schist head example belongs, was the golden age of artistic production in the area. Provenance: Private London collection of Asian Art; formerly in an old British collection. Acquired in Hong Kong in the early 1990s. Size: L:645mm / W:380mm ; 31.3kg