{"id":129,"date":"2018-12-14T03:57:44","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T03:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/commons.mtholyoke.edu\/gandharanreliefsfinalproject\/?page_id=129"},"modified":"2018-12-18T15:32:11","modified_gmt":"2018-12-18T15:32:11","slug":"gandhara-and-its-art","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/commons.mtholyoke.edu\/gandharanreliefsfinalproject\/gandhara-and-its-art\/","title":{"rendered":"Gandhara and Its Art"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Map of Ancient Gandhara<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The book begins by discussing the general concepts behind Gandharan art, including the preconceptions many people may have about its nature and development. Just as the physical exhibition challenges the viewer to think more deeply about the about the degree to which Gandharan art developed from a solely Western influence on Indian culture, the catalogue asserts that one \u201ccannot boil down Gandhara\u2019s art to these two components only.\u201d1<\/sup>Additionally, in discussing the history of the region (which is firmly labeled as belonging to what is now North Western Pakistan), the author of this essay, Luczantis, proposes that the Kushan ruler Kaniska, who\u2019s cultural tolerance is proposed to have integrated Buddhism into ancient Gandhara, \u201ccannot be described as Buddhist without criticism.\u201d1<\/sup>By challenging the notions of these influences as the sole drive behind Gandhara\u2019s artistic flowering, Luczantis opens the door to discuss various other possible influences to the region, such as the area\u2019s former Brahmanic roots and the influences of Hinduism even within the peak of Gandharan art. Other proposed influences include the Persian Empire. In sum total, Luczantis\u2019 work informs the reader from the first few pages of the book that the conventional and simplistic view of Gandharan art they\u2019ve been told is not the whole truth. Instead, the text is not afraid to offer theories and new ideas to the readers, a trend that continues through this section as the authors describe the basics of Buddhism as a religion, the function of stupas, and the development of the Buddhist image. Furthermore, a chronological account of Gandharan art plainly reveals the missing potions of knowledge and states that \u201cresearch suffers due to circumstances of discovery\u201d in which the British colonial administration \u201cconcentrated on [collecting] what they considered essential.\u201d With \u201cabout half of the objects currently in museums [being] of insecure provenance\u2026their origins may at best, be reconstructed through painstaking work with historical photographs.\u201d1<\/sup>This move to transparency regarding the dubious nature of collecting is becoming a trend among museums as of late, but with many worried about the possibly of repatriation or fines, phrasing of this issue may become deflective or purposefully vague in order to preserve the individual museum\u2019s security. With this collection being sourced from the apparent country of origin, however, there is less fear of provenance insecurity and therefore a greater willingness to promote the issue, especially if such measures may eventually lead to repatriation to Pakistan. For a nation whose cultural history and independence even now are doubted, this assertion of transparency proves especially important.<\/p>\n

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  1. Ed. Proser, Adriana. The Buddhist Heritage of Pakistan: Art of Gandhara.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The book begins by discussing the general concepts behind Gandharan art, including the preconceptions many people may have about its nature and development. Just as the physical exhibition challenges the viewer to think more deeply about the about the degree to which Gandharan art developed from a solely Western influence on Indian culture, the catalogue asserts that one \u201ccannot boil down Gandhara\u2019s art to these two components only.\u201d1Additionally, in discussing the history of the region (which is firmly labeled as belonging to what is now North Western Pakistan), the author of this essay, Luczantis, proposes that the Kushan ruler Kaniska, who\u2019s cultural tolerance is proposed to have integrated Buddhism into ancient Gandhara, \u201ccannot be described as Buddhist without criticism.\u201d1By challenging the notions of these influences as the sole drive behind Gandhara\u2019s artistic flowering, Luczantis opens the door to discuss various other possible influences to the region, such as the area\u2019s former Brahmanic roots and the influences of Hinduism even within the peak of Gandharan art. Other proposed influences include the Persian Empire. In sum total, Luczantis\u2019 work informs the reader from the first few pages of the book that the conventional and simplistic view of Gandharan art they\u2019ve been told is not the whole truth. Instead, the text is not afraid to offer theories and new ideas to the readers, a trend that continues through this section as the authors describe the basics of Buddhism as a religion, the function of stupas, and the development of the Buddhist image. Furthermore, a chronological account of Gandharan art plainly reveals the missing potions of knowledge and states that \u201cresearch suffers due to circumstances of discovery\u201d in which the British colonial administration \u201cconcentrated on [collecting] what they considered essential.\u201d With \u201cabout half of the objects currently in museums [being] of insecure provenance\u2026their origins may at best, be reconstructed through painstaking work with historical photographs.\u201d1This move to transparency regarding the dubious nature of collecting is becoming a trend among museums as of late, but with many worried about the possibly of repatriation or fines, phrasing of this issue may become deflective or purposefully vague in order to preserve the individual museum\u2019s security. With this collection being sourced from the apparent country of origin, however, there is less fear of provenance insecurity and therefore a greater willingness to promote the issue, especially if such measures may eventually lead to repatriation to Pakistan. For a nation…<\/p>\n

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