A stone sculpture of a figure standing upright on a detailed pedestal. They are wearing a robe that is patterned with rectangles and covers their arms and legs. The figure is bald. Both of their hands have been broken off.
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front Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

The stone sculpture is of a figure standing upright on a detailed pedestal. They are wearing a robe that covers their arms and legs but is open on the chest. The robe is patterned with faded green and orange rectangles with dark blue outlines. The figure is bald. Their arms are down by their sides and bent up towards the center of their chest. Both of their hands have been broken off. The figure is a very pale off-white color.

Gallery Text

This monk and his companion on the opposite side of the niche to the right did not come from Tianlongshan, but they do share the style and iconography of the sculptures there. Perhaps originally placed within a temple hall or cave shrine as disciples of a central buddha figure, the sculptures depict youthful monks dressed in patchwork monastic robes, or kashaya, which traditionally were pieced together from bits of discarded cloth. Monks generally are shown with a shaven pate, the top of the head rounded and dome-shaped. By contrast, buddhas, who also wear monastic robes, are depicted with short hair arranged either in wavy locks or in snail-shell curls; buddhas always have an ushnisha, the cranial protrusion that symbolizes the expanded wisdom gained at the time of their awakening. Together, the Buddha, his Dharma (teachings), and the Sangha (monastic community), form the Three Jewels of Buddhism, whose protection and guidance are sought by worshippers in every ritual performance.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.53.31
Title
Monk (Bhiksu)
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
figure, sculpture
Date
c. 570
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Northern Qi, 550-577
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/204424

Location

Location
Level 1, Room 1610, Buddhist Sculpture, Buddhism and Early East Asian Buddhist Art
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Marble with polychromy
Dimensions
sculpture with attached circular base and tang (not visible): H. 97.8 x W. 26 x D. 17.1 cm (38 1/2 x 10 1/4 x 6 3/4 in.)
display dimensions (sculpture with separate lotus base): H. 107.6 x W. 32.1 x D. 31.1 cm (42 3/8 x 12 5/8 x 12 1/4 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[C. T. Loo & Co.,Paris, May 1, 1930] sold; to Grenville L. Winthrop, New York (1930-1943), bequest; to Fogg Art Museum, 1943.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.53.31
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

THIS WORK MAY NOT BE LENT BY THE TERMS OF ITS ACQUISITION TO THE HARVARD ART MUSEUMS.

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Publication History

  • Osvald Sirén, "Chinese Marble Sculptures of the Transition Period", Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities (Stockholm, Sweden, 1940), no. 12, p. 493, plate VII b, right
  • Kristin A. Mortimer and William G. Klingelhofer, Harvard University Art Museums: A Guide to the Collections, Harvard University Art Museums and Abbeville Press (Cambridge and New York, 1986), no. 19, p. 26

Exhibition History

  • S426: Chinese Buddhist Cave Sculpture, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 10/20/1985 - 04/30/2008
  • 32Q: 1610 Buddhist Art I, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu