Greco-buddhist Art From Gandhara, Bodhisattva Head, 1st Century Bc–4th Century Ad

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Fragment of a high relief carved from gray-blue schist (a material typical ofGandhara art) depicting the profile of a Bodhisattva’s head
Custom-made modern base in painted steel and brass
1st century BC – 4th century AD

Dimensions : 9 x 5 x 3 cm
Dimensions with base : 14 x 5 x 4 cm

Signs of normal wear

Greco-Buddhist art refers to the body of pictorial,sculptural, metalwork, and numismatic works resulting from the synthesis of Greek andIndo-Buddhist styles. This art form first emerged in Gandhara (Pakistan, in thePeshawar region, corresponding to the territory of the easternmost satrapy ofthe Achaemenid Persian Empire) at the beginning of the Common Era, under the Kushan Empire,thanks to the cultural encounter between the nomadic peoples of Central Asia,the Greek world, the Indian world, and the Iranian-Persian world. Greco-Buddhist art ischaracterized in particular by a strong sense of realism derived from Hellenistic art,conveying movement, emotion, and the vitality of the human form—a style applied not onlyto the traditional figures of Eastern Greek art but also to thedepiction of the Buddha, the bodhisattvas, and scenes associated with Buddhism.Works belonging to this art form have come to ourattention primarily through looting and 19th-century Orientalism, and later throughmajor archaeological excavations conducted in collaboration with various countries, including theUnited Kingdom, France, and Italy in the 20th century.