Portable Shrine with the Buddha Shakyamuni Preaching his First Sermon
Unknown Artist
5th–6th century
Medium
Phyllitic green schist
Dimensions
2 9/16 x 2 9/16 in. (6.5 x 6.5 cm)
Classification
Sculpture
Culture
Pakistan (ancient region of Gandhara)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Bette-Ann and William Spielman, 1991
Accession Number
1991.407.1
Tags
About this artwork
This exquisite portable shrine exemplifies the sophisticated Buddhist art produced in Gandhara, the ancient region encompassing present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan where Greco-Roman, Persian, and Indian artistic traditions merged to create distinctive Buddhist iconography. Carved from phyllitic green schist during the fifth or sixth century, this diminutive devotional object depicts Buddha Shakyamuni preaching his First Sermon at Sarnath, one of the most significant events in Buddhist tradition...