Gandharva playing the pipa
During its diffusion in the Far East, Buddhism carried with it artistic forms from the Indian world. We thus see the multiplication in China of places of worship dug directly into the mountainside. If these excavated cave sites give the impression of great iconographic diversity, the distribution in space of the different types of characters represented responds to almost immutable rules. The main venerated beings, Buddhas or bodhisattvas, are placed opposite the entrance to the cave and, sometimes, in niches multiplied on the walls. Above them, but also, in height, on either side of the entrance protected by door guards and on the ceiling are regularly depicted deities in flight.
These celestial dancers and musicians emphasize the importance of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas they surround. By their integration within an abundant sculpted and painted decoration, they contribute to transporting the faithful out of the materiality of the profane world. The grainy rock of this work, the dynamism of the pose, the low relief and the treatment of the folds of the garment in concentric waves suggest that this gandharva once adorned the site of Yungang, in Shanxi. Its style is notably very close to that of the celestial dancers of cave n° 6 dug between the years 470 and 494.
Cartel:
Gandharva playing the pipe, Northern Wei dynasty (386-534), late XNUMXthe century
Grès
43,5x30x3 cm
MC 10013.
Gift of the Society of Friends of the Cernuschi Museum with contributions from Mr. François Pinault, Mr. and Mrs. Yves Mahé, Mr. Jacques Barrère, the Antoni Laurent Foundation, a group of forty-seven amateurs and a credit from the city of Paris, 1998.
Photo credit :
© Paris Museums / Cernuschi Museum
Celestial Musician (User Name), 386. Peter. Cernuschi Museum, Museum of Asian Arts of the City of Paris.
