Q1.
Now that you are familiar with the basic characteristics of the Mathurā and Gāndhāra styles of art, study the pictures of artefacts given in Fig. 6.27 on the right page and try to identify which school of art each artefact belongs to. Write your observations with justifications and discuss your answers with your classmates.
Answer
First fix the two tests in your mind — the stone and the treatment of the figure.
| Gāndhāra school | Mathurā school | |
|---|---|---|
| Stone | Grey-black schist | Red (often spotted) sandstone — sometimes buff |
| Influence | Greco-Roman blended with Indian | Distinctly Indian; little Greco-Roman influence |
| Figures | Realistic anatomy, flowing robes in deep folds, wavy hair, sharp intricate detail | Fuller figures, smooth modelling, thin clinging garments, broad faces |
| Subjects | Mostly Buddha and Bodhisattva images and scenes of the Buddha's life | Buddha and also Indian deities — Kubera, Lakṣhmī, Śhiva, Kartikeya, yakṣhas and yakṣhiṇīs, Nāgas |
Now apply the tests to the six artefacts:
| # | Artefact | School | Justification |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A scene of the death of Buddha (parinirvāṇa) | Gāndhāra | Grey-black schist; a crowded narrative panel; deeply cut, realistic drapery over the reclining Buddha; mourners with individual faces and moustaches — Greco-Roman modelling |
| 2 | Bodhisattva Maitreya | Gāndhāra | Dark grey-blue schist; wavy hair, moustache, heavy ornaments and a shawl falling in deep folds like a Roman toga; slender, anatomically observed body |
| 3 | Śhiva linga worshipped by Kuṣhāṇa devotees | Mathurā | Red sandstone with its typical spotting; an Indian, non-Buddhist subject; flat, simply modelled figures |
| 4 | A Nāga between two Nāgīs, inscribed with the eighth year of Kaṇiṣhka's reign | Mathurā | Buff-red sandstone; a purely Indian folk deity with a canopy of snake hoods; heavy rounded body; a Brahmi inscription of a Kuṣhāṇa regnal year — Mathurā was the Kuṣhāṇas' Indian art centre |
| 5 | Kartikeya, god of war, and Agni, god of fire | Mathurā | Mottled red sandstone; Indian deities; broad faces, full bodies, smooth surfaces, shallow relief |
| 6 | Standing Buddha | Gāndhāra | Dark schist; a large plain halo; the robe covers both shoulders and falls in continuous rippling folds — the hallmark of the Gāndhāra Buddha |
Gāndhāra: 1, 2, 6 · Mathurā: 3, 4, 5
The quickest test: colour first, subject second. Dark grey stone with heavy folded robes → Gāndhāra. Red or buff sandstone with a full, smooth, Indian figure → Mathurā. Then check the subject: a Nāga, a yakṣha, Kartikeya or a Śhiva linga will almost always be Mathurā.
Tip: when you write your justification, always name two features — the material and one thing about the figure. One feature alone can mislead, because both schools carved the Buddha.