Head of a Buddha
China, Hebei province, Xiangtangshan, Head of a Buddha, 560 CE, limestone, Gift of Mr. Cornelius Ruxton Love, Jr., public domain, 51.255
This work is not currently on view.
- Title
Head of a Buddha
- Artist
- Date
560 CE
- Period
China: Northern Qi Dynasty (550-577 CE)
- Medium
limestone
- Dimensions (H x W x D)
17 1/8 in x 11 1/4 in x 12 5/8 in
- Collection Area
Asian Art
- Category
Sculpture
- Object Type
sculpture
- Culture
Chinese
- Credit Line
Gift of Mr. Cornelius Ruxton Love, Jr.
- Accession Number
51.255
- Copyright
public domain
- Terms
According to Buddhist tradition, when the young prince Sakyamuni resolved to seek spiritual enlightenment, he discarded his courtly garments and cut off his long hair. In Indian and East Asian sculpture, the tonsured Buddha is occasionally shown as bald, but more often he is portrayed as seen here, with a head of tiny, snail-shaped curls. This head of a Buddha was originally part of an impressive sculptural diorama of life-size figures carved into the living rock at Xiangtangshan (Mountain of Echoing Halls), a site not far from the Northern Qi capital of Ye. More than ten caves were excavated at Xiangtangshan during the third quarter of the sixth century, under the patronage of the Northern Qi ruling family and nobles.
