Buddhist sculpture at the V&A

Veneration of the Empty Throne. India, 100-200 AD. Museum no. IS 1039-1883

Veneration of the Empty Throne
North India (Mathura, Uttar Pradesh)
100-200 AD
Sandstone, carved relief
Museum no. IS 1039-1883
Given by F A Turton

This red sandstone carving probably once formed part of a temple or shrine. It depicts the adoration of the empty throne, with a Buddhist emblem on it. The emblem can be variously interpreted as a throne cushion, a discarded turban headdress or a 'dharmachakra' ('wheel of law') symbol.

Early Buddhist artists were reluctant to represent the Buddha in human form. They preferred to indicate his presence symbolically. This relief indicates the Buddha's presence through an empty throne, attended by two attendants bearing fly-whisks, emblems of a world sovereign (‘cakravartin’), and flanked by winged-lion capitals.

Head of the Buddha. Afghanistan, 300-400 AD. Museum no. IM 3-1931

Head of the Buddha
Afghanistan (Hadda)
300-400 AD
Stucco with pigment
Museum no. IM 3-1931

This beautiful head of the Buddha was once part of a large-scale narrative panel modelled in high relief. It formed part of a life-size figure, probably of Gautama the Buddha as a young man. Like much Gandharan stucco, this head was originally richly polychromed, and traces of red remain on the lips, eyelids and hair.

The face was shaped from a mould. Examples of such moulds have been found in excavations at Gandharan sites, which indicates such figures were manufactured at the monasteries where they were installed. However, the hair and other features were modelled by hand. A flat surface on the reverse indicates that the head was attached to a surface behind rather than free-standing. The remaining wall fragment probably formed part of the Buddha’s nimbus.

The head displays several of the characteristic auspicious marks (‘laksanas’) of the Buddha. These include the prominent hair-knot (‘ushnisha’), which here has been treated in a Graeco-Roman style unlike contemporary Indian styles. Another of the marks is the forehead mark (‘urna’). The elongated earlobes are an allusion to the Buddha’s former princely status when he wore pendant earrings.

White Tara. India, 175-300 AD. Museum no. IM 28-1919

White Tara
Nepal or Tibet
1500-1600 AD
Copper, gilt, jewels
Museum no. IM 28-1919

White Tara ('white saviouress'), goddess of purity and  transcendant wisdom, is the consort of the fourth  Dhyani Buddha.

Head of the Buddha. Central Java, 800-850 AD. Museum no. IS 38-1988

Head of the Buddha
Central Java
800-850 AD
Stone, carved
Museum no. IS 38-1988

Buddhist Shrine. Burma, 1800-1900 AD. Museum no. IS 11-1969

Buddhist Shrine
Burma (Mandalay)
1800-1900 AD
Teak, gilded lacquer, semi-precious stones and mirrors
Museum no. IS 11-1969

Figure of a Luohan. China, 1279-1368 AD. Museum no. A 29-1931

Figure of a Luohan
Northern China
1279-1368 AD
Wood with traces of paint
Museum no. A 29-1931

This wooden sculpture represents a Luohan, the name for a monk who acts as a guardian of Buddhism and is believed to have attained enlightenment through merit and virtue. The Luohan was a member of the Buddhist pantheon in China, and the earliest representations can be traced to the 4th century AD. These figures were usually placed in groups near the Buddha in temples and monasteries. Over time, depictions of Luohans evolved from individualized to more formalized portraits. The use of these images was further encouraged by the Chan (Zen) Buddhist sects, which stressed the importance of having a religious teacher and an interaction between master and pupil.

The style of this example suggests that the piece was made in north China where many workshops excelled in carved and painted wooden sculpture.

The appreciation for Chinese sculpture in Europe developed alongside an enthusiasm for earlier Chinese ceramics, and during the 1920s and 1930s the Museum acquired some outstanding examples, including this Luohan.

Acala Vidyaraja with his acolytes Cetaka and Kimkara. Japan, 1700-1800. Museum no. M 135-1922

Acala Vidyaraja with his acolytes Cetaka and Kimkara
(Fudo-Myo-o and Acolytes)
Japan
1700-1800
Patinated and gilded bronze with applied lacquer
Museum no. M 135-1922

Buddha Sakyamuni. China, 550-577 AD. Museum no. A 4-1924

Buddha Sakyamuni
North China
550-577 AD
Limestone with traces of gesso and paint, gilded
Museum no. A 4-1924

The simple clothing worn by this Buddha echoes the modest robes worn by the historical Buddha when he reached enlightenment after an intense period of meditation. Behind the figure is an ornate halo or aureole, decorated with flowers and an inner ring of lotus petals. The symmetrical composition of the sculpture intensifies the calmness reflected in the Buddha's face. Traces of red, black and green pigment on the head hint at the brightly coloured surface of the figure in earlier times.

Credit line

Purchased with help from The Art Fund and private donors

Head of the Buddha. Thailand, 1200-1250 AD. Museum no. IM 62-1927

Head of the Buddha
Thailand (Lopburi)
1200-1250 AD
Sandstone, carved
Museum no. IM 62-1927

Ghantapa and Consort. Tibet, 1600-1700 AD. Museum no. IM 61-1929

Ghantapa and Consort
Tibet
1600-1700 AD
Gilded brass, cast
Museum no. IM 61-1929

This piece shows the Mahasiddha Ghantapa and consort. Mahasiddhas (‘great accomplished ones’) were tantric adepts who lived in India between the 6th and 11th centuries. A group of 84 Mahasiddhas are revered throughout the Tibetan Buddhist world as enlightened beings. Ghantapa, whose name means ‘bearer of the bell’ or ghanta, lived in north-east India during the 9th century. In his right hand he holds a vajra or ‘diamond sceptre’, symbolising compassion. In his left he holds a bell, representing wisdom. Together these attributes form the fundamental components of the enlightened state. These two qualities are mirrored again on the human level by the male, who signifies compassion, and the female, signifying wisdom.

Buddha offering Protection. India, 1000-1100 AD. Museum no. IPN 2639

Buddha Offering Protection
South India (Nagapattinam, Tamilnadu)
1000-1100 AD
Gilded cast copper alloy
Museum no. IPN 2639

This is a spectacular sculpture of great presence and historical importance. The over-life sized seated figure of the Buddha, legs crossed tightly in a strict meditative position (padmasana) and chest fully extended with yogic disciplined breath (prana), creates a powerful image. The figure wears a form-defining robe of untailored cloth (sanghati), worn in the monastic manner. The folds of the robes are deeply incised to give the entire figure a remarkable degree of surface animation. The missing hands were in all probability, and judging from extant examples, displaying the protective abaya-mudra gesture with the proper right, and holding the ends of the pleated monastic robes with the raised left hand.The figure is seated on an integrated unadorned plinth.

This sculpture belongs to a select group of related Buddha and Jina images. It compares most closely in terms of proportioning and the stylistic rendering of the robes, with three dated sculptures belonging to the same school. Two were excavated at Kausambi and dated equivalent to 161 AD. The third was recovered at Sravasti, to the east of Mathura, and is inscribed with a date equivalent to 213 AD.

The style of this Buddha, along with these dated examples, represents a clear second-phase in the development of the Buddha-type under the Kushan dynasty. The pure Mathura style begins in this phase - around the second half of the second century - to reflect a strong stylistic dialogue between the Buddhist schools of Mathura and Gandhara. The drawing of the robes over both shoulders, as opposed to the earlier Mathura convention of leaving one shoulder exposed, is an innovation of this period seen at both centres.

Credit line

Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, The Anthony Gardner Memorial Fund and an anonymous donor

The Birth of the Buddha. Pakistan, 1 - 100 AD. Museum no. IM 109-1927

The Birth of the Buddha
Pakistan (Gandhara)
1-100 AD
Schist, carved relief
Museum no. IM 109-1927
Bequeathed by Lord Curzon

Torso of Seated Buddha. India, 175-300 AD. Museum no. IS 213-2006

Torso of Seated Buddha
Northern India (Mathura, Uttar Pradesh)
175-300 AD
Sandstone, carved relief
Museum no. IS 213-2006

This is a spectacular sculpture of great presence and historical importance. The over-life sized seated figure of the Buddha, legs crossed tightly in a strict meditative position (padmasana) and chest fully extended with yogic disciplined breath (prana), creates a powerful image. The figure wears a form-defining robe of untailored cloth (sanghati), worn in the monastic manner. The folds of the robes are deeply incised to give the entire figure a remarkable degree of surface animation. The missing hands were in all probability, and judging from extant examples, displaying the protective abaya-mudra gesture with the proper right, and holding the ends of the pleated monastic robes with the raised left hand.The figure is seated on an integrated unadorned plinth.

This sculpture belongs to a select group of related Buddha and Jina images. It compares most closely in terms of proportioning and the stylistic rendering of the robes, with three dated sculptures belonging to the same school. Two were excavated at Kausambi and dated equivalent to 161 AD. The third was recovered at Sravasti, to the east of Mathura, and is inscribed with a date equivalent to 213 AD.

The style of this Buddha, along with these dated examples, represents a clear second-phase in the development of the Buddha-type under the Kushan dynasty. The pure Mathura style begins in this phase - around the second half of the second century - to reflect a strong stylistic dialogue between the Buddhist schools of Mathura and Gandhara. The drawing of the robes over both shoulders, as opposed to the earlier Mathura convention of leaving one shoulder exposed, is an innovation of this period seen at both centres.

Credit line

Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, The Anthony Gardner Memorial Fund and an anonymous donor

The Goddess Purneshvari. India, 1150-1200AD. Museum no. IS 71-1880

The Goddess Purneshvari
Eastern India (Jaynagar, Bihar)
1150-1200 AD
Basalt, carved relief
Museum no. IS 71-1880

The Mother Goddess was popularly worshipped under a variety of local names throughout India. During the Pala period (about 760-1142 AD) in eastern India, Purneshvari was venerated by both Buddhists and Hindus.

This rare and beautiful sculpture was found in 1877 during an excavation of a tank at Jaynagar, Monghyr District, Bihar. Here the four-armed goddess is seated on a double-lotus throne with one pendant foot resting on a lotus stem. She is beautifully formed, richly bejewelled and smiles benignly as she supports an infant on her lap. Her upper hands hold rods, one with an elephant emblem, the other a fly-whisk.

Above her a pair of celestial garland-bearers hover in clouds, and a wondrous ‘kirttimukha’ ('face of glory') presides over all from above. Purneshvari is flanked by the Hindu elephant-headed god Ganesha. However, the inscription gives an indication of a Buddhist sectarian affiliation. It offers merit to the ‘siddhas’ (community of tantric masters) and ‘sramanas’ (ascetic monks), as well as to the relatives of the donor, named as ‘Utakva’.

The inscription also names the goddess and the place of installation – the ‘illustrious (city of) Campa’. It dates the sculpture to the 35th year of the reign of a king called Palapala, entitled ‘Lord of Gauda’ (Gaudesvara). This king may have been the last of the Pala rulers, as these regions rapidly succumbed to the Muslim invaders between 1199 and 1201.

Kneeling Bodhisattva. China, 1426-1435 AD. Museum no. 275-1898

Kneeling Bodhisattva
China
1426-1435 AD
Copper gilt
Museum no. 275-1898

Standing Buddha. Burma, 1800-1900 AD. Museum no. IM 39-1912

Standing Buddha
Burma (Pagan)
1800-1900 AD
Teak, gilded lacquer, inset with glass, semi-precious stones
Museum no. IM 39-1912

This standing Buddha, of carved, lacquered and gilded teak, wears the crown, jewellery and robes associated with royalty. Figures of the Buddha dressed this way are in sharp contrast to the simple garments of a monk. But Buddha figures of this sort were originally based on similar figures in eastern Indian art of the Pala period (AD 750-1150), and became very popular in the late 18th century, when this representation became associated with the story of the subduing of Jambhupati. This oral tradition describes how a powerful king named Jambhupati threatened to annex the dominion of King Bimbisara of Rajagaha. Bimbisara called on the Buddha for help, and in response the Buddha sent one of his followers to bring Jambusara before him. In order to impress Jambhupati with his power, he had a magnificent palace built and appeared sitting on a jewelled throne under a white umbrella. Jambhupati acknowledged the Buddha and became a monk.

The Buddha is depicted wearing the gold insignia of a Burmese King of the Konbaung Dynasty (1752-1885) with its mass of jewelled winged elements, high rising crown and gold salwe (chain of office). The Buddha's right hand is raised in abhaya mudra (a gesture of protection and reassurance) and his left hand extended in varada (charity) mudra.

Torso of Standing Buddha. China, 618-906 AD. Museum no. A 6-1935

Torso of Standing Buddha
Northern China (Quyang City, Hebei Province)
618-906 AD
Marble
Museum no. A 6-1935

This full-bodied figure once stood in a temple complex. The body has been carved from a single block of stone, and the head and hands, now missing, would have been added later. It can be dated stylistically to the mid-Tang period, when Buddhist figures were sculpted with ample torsos, in contrast to the slimmer style of the previous century. The undulating folds of the robe are skilfully carved, placed at increasing distances to achieve a graceful aesthetic.

Credit line

Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, the Vallentin Bequest, Sir Percival David and the Universities China Committee

Head of the Buddha. China, 550-577 AD. Museum no. 98-1927

Head of the Buddha
Northern China (Hebei Province)
550-577 AD
Limestone with traces of pigment, carved
Museum no. A 98-1927

Traces of pigment accentuate the eyebrows, eyes and mouth of this huge head. The hairstyle is typical of the historical Buddha Sakyamuni, with tight curls and the prominent usnisa or topknot. The mark on the forehead, expressing wisdom and openness, originally incorporated an impressive jewel. Once part of a monumental figure in a cave complex, the head would have looked down from high. Its symmetrical composition and serene expression would have inspired Buddhist followers standing below.