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A beautiful Ancient Gandharan Schist-stone sculpture of a Bodhisattva, dating to approximately 200 AD.
This masterful artwork, rendered naturalistically in the finest Hellenistic traditions, represents a Bodhisattva or Enlightened being. The Bodhisattva is shown with serene expression, full lips and almond shaped eyes. He wears an elaborate headdress, his hair swept back behind his ears.
This sculpture is deeply and confidently carved, and it can be classed as one of the more accomplished Gandharan works of the period. The head would once have belonged to a larger, possibly compositional relief as evidenced by the flat chiseled surface to the rear. The original relief would have occupied a prominent position in an important Ancient temple or shrine.
Bodhisattva is Buddhist term for a being who has attained Enlightenment, but has refused to proceed to Nirvana, so that he may share his wisdom with other men. This accounts for the serene, "Enlightened" expression on this example. Prince Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha, was often depicted in the form of a Bodhisattva in Graeco-Buddhist art such as this. It is however difficult to know if the current statue represents Gautama himself or another, without the full depiction.
Height Mounted: 8 3/4 inches.
Width of sculpture: 5 inches.
Provenance: British private collection.
Gandharan art has started to obtain significant prices on the art market. It is still considerably undervalued when compared to the rest of the Antiquities market, where Greek, Roman and Egyptian works of inferior quality sell for substantially higher prices. For these reasons, quality Gandharan art such as this represents a particularly good investment.
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