Abstract
Over the past decades Alchi is the site that probably attracted most attention when it comes to the study of early western Himalayan Buddhist art. Situated in a small fertile pocket of the Indus Valley and connected to the corridors of the trans-Karakorum-Himalayan system of trading routes. While the founders of Alchi - as testified by inscription - studied at Nyarma in Mar-yul (today‘s upper Ladakh), one of the three major monastic foundations of the western Tibetan kings of Guge-Purang, its art is considered the product of workshops from the Kashmir region. So far practically nothing is known about who the actual teachers were, who were active in the Alchi area around the 11th/12th century and who certainly had the major impact on its sophisticated art and architecture.
A set of four mural paintings inside a small chamber inside the ‚Great Entrance Stupa of the Alchi Compound‘ may provide some clues for sheding some light on this subject. The four paintings cover the four walls of an elevated stupa, the chamber of which can therefore be viewed from below. One wall depicts an Indian siddha, another wall is dedicated to a Tibetan monk, while the two other walls are occupied by two teachers who are neither relatable to a Tibetan nor an Indian origin. The proposed essay focuses on these two teachers whose protraits are extremely clear and full of details unknown from any other portrait from that period (probably due to the remarkable size of the depictions). The over-all composition of the panels displays a number of noteworthy features, one of which is the inclusion of full sets of ritual, ceremonial and personal equipement within the mandorlas, some of which might provide some reference to the identities of the teachers. Above all, a pseudo-inscription is drawn on the garment of one of the teachers. Written directly on the garment the inscription may be directly related to the identity of the depicted person.
In the following we will discuss the compositional features of the murals, the extra-ordinary design of the architectural frame of the background, stylistic elements of the protraits, the set of elements inside the mandorlas and - as a major point - the nature of the pseudo-inscription as well as the possible intention behind its inclusion. The essay will thereby shift the perspective towards a (possibly more intense than previously thought) Central Asian transfer of knowledge and models for material art into the Alchi region.
A set of four mural paintings inside a small chamber inside the ‚Great Entrance Stupa of the Alchi Compound‘ may provide some clues for sheding some light on this subject. The four paintings cover the four walls of an elevated stupa, the chamber of which can therefore be viewed from below. One wall depicts an Indian siddha, another wall is dedicated to a Tibetan monk, while the two other walls are occupied by two teachers who are neither relatable to a Tibetan nor an Indian origin. The proposed essay focuses on these two teachers whose protraits are extremely clear and full of details unknown from any other portrait from that period (probably due to the remarkable size of the depictions). The over-all composition of the panels displays a number of noteworthy features, one of which is the inclusion of full sets of ritual, ceremonial and personal equipement within the mandorlas, some of which might provide some reference to the identities of the teachers. Above all, a pseudo-inscription is drawn on the garment of one of the teachers. Written directly on the garment the inscription may be directly related to the identity of the depicted person.
In the following we will discuss the compositional features of the murals, the extra-ordinary design of the architectural frame of the background, stylistic elements of the protraits, the set of elements inside the mandorlas and - as a major point - the nature of the pseudo-inscription as well as the possible intention behind its inclusion. The essay will thereby shift the perspective towards a (possibly more intense than previously thought) Central Asian transfer of knowledge and models for material art into the Alchi region.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | From Local To Global |
Subtitle of host publication | Papers in Asian History and Culture. Prof. A K Narain Commemoration Volume |
Editors | Kamal Sheel, Charles Willemen, Kenneth Zysk |
Publisher | Buddhist World Press |
Pages | 401-420 |
ISBN (Print) | 9789380852744 |
Publication status | Published - 2017 |
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 602018 Indology