Relief with the birth of the Buddha
Medium:Carved grey schist
Geography: Gandhara, Pakistan
Date: 2nd - 3rd century AD
Period: Kushan Period
Dimensions:20.5 x 28.5 x 7 cm
Object number: 985.72.2
Gallery Location:Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery
DescriptionThis is one of a set of panels depicting life of the Buddha which originally decorated the base of a small stupa or column. Here the birth of the Buddha is the first of the major miracles of his life. While Queen Maya holds onto the braches of the sala tree, the infant Gautama emerges from her right side and is received by the gods Indra and Brahma. Representing the Buddha in human form arises nearly simultaneously in Gandhara on the northwest frontier and in Mathura in central India. Gandhara, on the cosmopolitan silk route, introduces elements of international Romano-Hellenistic style.
