The Paranirvana of Buddha, Gal Vihara, Polonnaruva, Ceylon
Medium
albumen print
Dimensions
image: 21.4 × 28.2 cm · matted: 35.6 × 45.7 cm
Classification
Photograph
Department
Photography
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Louise S. Richards
Accession Number
1976.156
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
male
About this artwork
During the British colonial period in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), a 12th-century monastic establishment with a colossal stone sculpture of the reclining Buddha had fallen into ruins. The photographer’s intentional inclusion of a Sri Lankan man, leaning against a pillar at the front of the composition, and a colonial Englishman, clambering over Buddha’s body, underscores how differently they interact with the site. The Sri Lankan visitor views the ruins with devotional reverence; the Englishman treats it...