Stucco Sculptures and Carvings

Stucco head of a Bodhisattva, Gandhara, 3rd - 5th century AD. Mounted on a custom made brass base. 12 inches high ( head alone 8.2 in ) 5.5 wide 5 deep Provanance: Ex Sotheby's, old...

A lovely small stucco head of the Buddha, ancient region of Gandhara, probably Hadda, 5th to 6th century, modern day Afghanistan. Beautifully rendered, the small Gandharan Buddha...

A striking Gandharan molded stucco head of a male Bodhisattva, tentatively identified as Manjushri, ancient region of Gandhara, probably Hadda or surrounding area, 3rd-5th century. The Bodhisattva is sculpted of stucco in an idealized manner as a youthful male, with soft and kind features, a benign expression on his face. He wears an elaborate pleated turban wrapped around his head, with two sweeping lobes at the front. His turban secured on one side by a small image of a roaring lion. The lion may be read as a reference to Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, who is often depicted as riding or subduing a roaring lion, a metaphor for taming the wild thoughts of the mind. Manjushri gazes outwards in a beatific manner from almond shaped eyes, a gentle smile on his lips. The eyes at different levels when looking at the sculpture head on, indicating the original placement of the head was meant to be viewed at an angle. Remnants of pigments to the eyes, nose, mouth and ears. Mounted on a custom black metal stand. Hadda was an important center of Buddhist learning in the early history of Greco Buddhist Gandhara, and at one time may have housed a bone relic of the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni. The sculpture and architecture of Hadda followed Hellenistic artistic conventions faithfully, leading some scholars to believe the distinct Greco Buddhist style of Gandhara was first developed in Hadda before spreading to the rest of the region. The kingdom of Gandhara was situated at a crossroads of trade and cultures. Being one of the last remnants of Alexander the Great's Empire, the inhabitants of the Greco-Bactrian Buddhist kingdom preserved Greek culture and heritage for centuries after the decline of the Greek Empire...

A Chinese Ming Dynasty period stucco head of a court lady from the 15th or 16th century, mounted on a wooden stand. Crafted in China during the Ming Dynasty, this stucco head is moun...

On offer is an early Buddha image from Dvaravati period (6-11th century) in Central Thailand. Made of stucco with an unfinished back suggesting its original use in architectural cont...

On offer is a fine Bodhisattva head made of stucco around a wood core circa 6th century AD. The fragment was part of high-relief wall sculpture based ...

A remarkable Chinese life sized painted stucco head of a luohan, Song, Liao or Jin Dynasty, circa 11th century, China. The amazingly life-like figure depicts a luohan (sometime spelled lohan), also known as an arhat, one of the original disciples of the Buddha. The elderly man has been molded in stucco with inset glass eyes and painted with idealized, if slightly exaggerated features. The unidentified luohan sports a bald, or perhaps shaved, domed head above a bulging forehead, symbolizing his vast wisdom. The wrinkles in his furrowed brow, and creases around his eyes add to his realism. The learned man stares out wisely from deep set, heavily lidded inlaid glass eyes that catch the light. The luohan has high cheekbones and a prominent jawline. His lips full and pursed as if about to speak. The corners of his mouth turned up ever so slightly in a faint smile, causing his gaunt cheeks to dimple charismatically. A series of dots above the upper lip indicate he may originally have sported a mustache of real hair. This life sized head with extremely realistic features fits into a very narrow time frame of Chinese Buddhist art. Perhaps the most recognized group of large, finely molded Chinese luohan...

A sublime molded stucco head of a young male donor from the ancient region of Gandhara, 4th-5th century. The youthful nobleman sculpted in an idealized...

PRESENTING a STUNNING piece of Indian Antiquity from circa the 4th-5th Century, namely, A Stucco Torso of the Buddha, Gandhara. Ancient Gandhara is located in the rugged foothills of the Himalayas in what is today northwest Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan, was for centuries a thriving center of trade along the Silk Road linking China, South Asia, and the Mediterranean. The piece was purchased by a Private Collector at Sotheby’s, or more probably, Christies of New York Auction pre-2000. The paper label on the wooden base is “7281/465” for Sale Number 7281, Lot No. 465. Sotheby’s and Christies operate a twice yearly auction of Southeast Asian Art & Antiquities in New York in the months of March and September. The Sale Number is more like a ‘Christies;’ Sale Number but we cannot locate any records for this sale online as it was pre-2004. The sculpture is a Gandharan stucco headless bust...