Beschreibung:

A red mottled sandstone fragment of a Bodhisattva, North India, Mathura, Kushan Period, 2nd century BC, superbly sculpted red mottled sandstone fragment depicts the head of a bodhisattva or Buddhist attendant, holding what appears to be a sword above his right shoulder, 21cm high and 22cm wide (excluding the stand) Whilst contemporary depictions of the Kushan King Kanishka show the figure holding a similar broad-sword at his side, images of swords in a Buddhist context are largely unknown in the art of the Kushans. Nonetheless, there are two alternative attributions that could possibly be assigned to this piece. Firstly, the carving may depict the prince Siddhartha cutting his long, princely hair as part of his ascetic renunciation. Alternatively, it is possible that the fragment is an extremely early representation of the bodhisattva Manjushri, the sword being an iconographic reference of his vow to cut through ignorance. In this regard, contemporary depictions of Manjushri were occuring in the art of Kushan administered Gandhara in response to the rise of Mahayana Buddhism in the region, so this is certainly plausibly. This is corroborated by the fact the figure's face and ornate hair-piece has similarities with other depictions of Bodhisattvas crafted in the Mathura region. For reference on early Mathura sculpture see Quintanilla, 2007, History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: Ca. 150 BCE - 100 CE. Provenance: Private UK Collection. Previously acquired from an auction in the United Kingdom.