Torso of a Standing Buddha

Object Details

• Label

  Located in central India, Mathura has had a long and illustrious history as a major religious center for Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. It is, understandably, one of the richest areas for archaeological discovery in all of India.

  Although Mathura was an important political center unde the Kushan empire, the religious images created by its artisans were predominantly Indian in form, unlike those of other Kushan centers that were influenced by Hellenistic styles. The most imposing of all Buddhist sculpture created by Mathura artists are those dating from the Gupta period (320-600 A.D.). Carved from the characteristic reddish-brown sandstone of the region, these figures stand frontally, with broad shoulders and slightly attenuated proportions. Despite the fact that these figures are fully clothed in monastic robes, it was the representation of pliant flesh that interested the Mathura sculptors. Thus, the drapery folds are reduced to a pattern of raised threads that fall in concentric loops over the body, emphasizing its sensuality. As a contrast to the restrained modeling of the Buddha images, Mathura sculptures of the Gupta period frequently are fitted with large ornamentally carved, floral halos. A lifesize standing Buddha, now in the Indian Museum, Calcutta, represents the classic Mathura image of the Gupta period (Reproduced in Benjamin Rowland, The Art and Architecture of India (2nd ed.; Harmondsworth, England, 1956), pl. 80).

  This small image of a standing Buddha in the Freer Gallery reflects the classic Mathura tradition on a modest scale. Although the figure has been damaged, its proportions and the reddish-brown sandstone are typical of the fifth century. The linear folds of the clinging garment are arranged symmetrically over the body. While both hands are missing, it is likely that the right hand displayed abhaya mudra ("fear-not" gesture), and the left hand held the hem of the outer garment.

• Provenance

  From 1940 to 1946

  C. T. Loo & Co., New York, from November 1940 [1]

  From 1946 to 1951

  Eduard von der Heydt (1882-1964), Ascona, Switzerland, purchased from C. T. Loo in April 1946 and lent to the Buffalo Museum of Science, Buffalo, New York [2]

  1951

  US Government vested Eduard von der Heydt's property under the provisions of "Trading with the Enemy Act" by vesting order, dated August 21, 1951 [3]

  From 1964 to 1973

  National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, from March 1964 [4]

  From 1973

  Freer Gallery of Art, transferred from National Museum of Natural History in 1973 [5]

  Notes:

  [1] See C. T. Loo's stockcard no. NYJ-1: "Small torso of a Buddha in red sand stone from Matura, first Century A. D.," Frank Caro Archive, New York University, copy in object file. According to the stockcard, Loo purchased the sculpture in November 1940 in India. According to J. E. van Lohuzien-de Leeuw, the sculpture was acquired by Loo probably through Gabriel Jouveau-Dubreuil (1885-1945), Pondicherry, see J. E. van Lohuzien-de Leeuw, Indische Skulpturen der Sammlung Eduard von der Heydt/Indian Sculptures in the von der Heydt Collection (Zurich: Atlantis Verlag, 1964), p. 42. In 1942 Loo exhibited the sculpture in his New York gallery, see C. T. Loo & Co., An Exhibition of the Sculpture of Greater India: A Fully Illustrated Catalogue, exh. cat. (New York: C. T. Loo & Co., 1942), cat. 28 (ill.).

  [2] See C. T. Loo's stockcard cited in note 1.

  See also "Catalogue of the Von der Heydt Loan to the Buffalo Museum of Science: Loan Material from Baron Von der Heydt, as of March 1949," where the sculpture is documented under an inventory card no. 4648.3, copy in object file.

  According to information on the inventory card, Eduard von der Heydt purchased the sculpture from C. T. Loo in April 1946.

  [3] See Vesting Order No. 18344, August 21, 1951, Office of Alien Property, Department of Justice.

  Eduard von der Heydt exhausted all the legal remedies against the forfeiture of his property provided to him by the Trading with the Enemy Act.

  [4] Attorney General, Robert Kennedy authorized transfer of the von der Heydt collection from Buffalo Museum of Science to the custody of the Smithsonian Institution in March 1964. The collection was transferred to the National Museum of Natural History.

  In 1966 US Congress legislated transferring the title of the von der Heydt collection to the Smithsonian Institution, see Public Law 89-503, 80 Stat. 287, July 18, 1966. The sculpture was accessioned under no. 448111, see "Smithsonian Office of Anthropology Accession Data," copy in object file.

  [5] The sculpture was among 13 objects in the von der Heydt collection transferred from National Museum of Natural History to the Freer Gallery of Art, see "Smithsonian Institution Intramural Transfer of Specimens" memorandum, dated January 29, 1973, copy in object file.

  The sculpture was accessioned to the Freer Gallery Study Collection under no. FSC-S-13 and subsequently transferred to the permanent collection in August 1976.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Hindu and Buddhist Art (January 28, 1981 to September 24, 1981)

  A Decade of Discovery: Selected Acquisitions 1970-1980 (November 9, 1979 to May 22, 1980)

  Indian Art (January 1, 1963 to January 28, 1981)

• Previous custodian or owner

  C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)

  C. T. Loo 盧芹齋 (1880-1957)

  Baron Eduard von der Heydt (1882-1964)

  National Museum of Natural History, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution

• Origin

  Mathura, India

• Credit Line

  Transfer from the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution

• Type

  Sculpture

• Restrictions and Rights

  CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

  This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  500s, 400s

• Name

  Loo, C. T., von der Heydt, Eduard, buddha, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution, C.T. Loo & Company

• Place

  Mathura, India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Art, Gupta dynasty (300 - 699), Stone

• Culture

  Buddhists, Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Object Type

  Sculpture