Buddhist Sculpture in Clay: Early Western Himalayan Art, Late 10th to Early 13th Centuries

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Author: Christian Luczanits

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Large-scale clay sculptures representing the main deities are characteristics of the earliest Tibetan Buddhist monuments and particularly of the monasteries and village-temples built -from the end of the 10th to the early 13th centuries in West Tibet and Ladakh. Commonly placed in the main niches along the central axis of the monuments, these images of highest quality constitute a major source for the cultural and religious history of western Himalayan (Indo-Tibetan) art and early Tibetan art in general. Based on extensive field research and in situ documentation for more than a decade, this groundbreaking study provides a comprehensive assessment of the early western Himalayan sculptures and their context.

Being the only preserved sculptures known so far that are built in accordance with the sophisticated sculptural technique described in Indian classical literature, western Himalayan clay sculpture is closely linked to late Northwest-Indian (Buddhist) art in which otherwise little evidence remains. By surveying the astonishing variety of these sculptures and linking them to contemporaneous painting and other art forms such as woodcarving, this book provides the first comprehensive account of the development of western Himalayan art and its variegated forms of local adaptations.

By tracing the spread and origin of iconographic forms and motifs, this study illuminates the interaction between Indian and Tibetan art when Buddhism was firmly established in the western Himalayas. Finally, it summarizes how the heritage of early western Himalayan art and sculpture has continued. The surveyed monuments include the Tabo Assembly Hall, Ropa, Nako, Lalung, Dungkar as well as the early temples of Alchi, Mangyu and Sumda.

The 323 illustrationsùmost of them in situ documentation in color as well as archival photography, plans and diagramsùmake this intensely cross referenced and indexed book an indispensable source for anyone interested in western Himalayan and early Tibetan art. The stunning quality and distinctive 'sthetics of the sculptures, many of them represented on a full page, make it also a visual feast.

Buddhist Sculpture in Clay: Early Western Himalayan Art, Late 10th to Early 13th Centuries, Christian Luczanits, Serindia, HArdocer, 2004, 368 pages, $85.00

Table of Contents iii
List of Figures v
Preface and Acknowledgements xiii
Spellings and Pronunciation xvi
INTRODUCTION 1
- Sculptures Made of Clay 11
- The Classical Indian Technique 12
- Sculptural Techniques in the Western Himalayas 17
- Early Clay Sculpture in Central Tibet 18
- Abodes of the Buddhas 21
THE EARLIEST WEST TIBETAN MONUMENTS 25
- The Three Major Foundations 29
- Tabo 33
- Entry Hall 35
- Cella 35
- Assembly Hall 44
- Ropa 57
- Minor Early Foundations 63
- Tiak 64
- Poo 66
- Charang Foundation 67
- Johling 68
- Two Successive Artistic Traditions 69
12TH CENTURY WEST TIBETAN MONUMENTS 75
- Nako 77
- Translatorís Temple 79
- Upper Temple 84
- Lalung 89
- Vairocana Chapel 90
- Serkhang 92
- Gumrang 105
- Dunkar 111
- Diverging Traditions 117
THE ALCHI GROUP OF MONUMENTS 123
- Alchi 125
- Dukhang 126
- Sumtseg 135
- Manjusri Temple 146
- Mangyu 153
- Vairocana Temple 154
- Four-armed Maitreya Chapel 162
- Two-armed Maitreya Chapel 164
- Four Image Chêrten 169
- Sumda Chung 173
- Assembly Hall 175
- The Two Bodhisattva Chapels 185
- A Unique Tradition 189
- Buddhas Compared 195
ICONOGRAPHY 199
- Buddha 200
- Bodhisattva 207
- Goddess 212
- Protectors 216
- Compositions 217
- Iconographic Programmes 219
STYLE AND COMPOSITION 223
- Early Western Himalayan Painting Styles 225
- Stylistic Relationship of Sculpture and Painting 227
- Sculptural Styles 232
ORNAMENTATION AND FRAMES 237
- Dressing a mandala sculpture 237
- Special Ornaments 242
- Throne Constructions and Frames 247
- Lotus Scroll 255
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE 259
- Mounting 260
- Armature 263
- Binding Material and Cord 265
- Clay 265
- Modelling 268
- Applied Decoration 268
- Painting 273
- Proportions of the Tabo mandala sculptures 275
- Successive Buddhas 281
- Guge 283
- Kinnaur 286
- Ladakh 290
APPENDICES 293
Notes 303
Bibliography 321
Glossary 337
Indices 341
General Index 341
Index of Sanskrit Terms 355
Index of Tibetan Terms 357

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