Jain Temple: Relief of Parsvanatha, 23rd Tirthankara of Jain religion, Madhya Pradesh, Post-Gupta, about 700 A.D. London
Date
Authors
Photographer: Arthur Llewellyn Basham
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Description
Jainan art picked up many elements from Buddhist iconography and did not hesitate to reinterpret them for their own use when necessary, It was remarked earlier that physical types used for the Jainan sages or Tirthankaras, and for the Buddhas, both originated from the Yaksha images, In addition to this common feature, both Buddhas and Tirthankaras most often appear in the yogi posture of meditation, but the Jainan 'saviors' do not gesture with great frequency, their most characteristic attitude being a restful pose with hands held in the lap, Tirthankaras were first to adopt the numbus over the head of their image to signify Enlightenment and even borrowed the head of Naga serpents to compensate for an iconography of the Bodhi tree popular with the Buddhas, This particular example has even employed the royal parasol, A mass of attendant deities appear on either side of the figure, These, too, were common to Buddhist sculpture, -- Victoria and Albert Museum,
Citation
Collections
Source
Type
Archives Series
Basham Collection
Date created
circa 1970s
Access Statement
License Rights
This image is provided for research purposes only and must not be reproduced without the prior permission of the Archives Program, Australian National University.
DOI
Restricted until
Downloads
File
Description