Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

The ancient Kingdom of Gandhara, was once home to the mighty Kushan kings whose empire sat astride the great trade routes of Central Asia. The northern part of their realm encompassed the area of the modern nations of Pakistan and Afghanistan while the southern reaches of the realm extended into India to the area around the city of Mathura. Works produced in the north, usually made out of schist or stucoo like this one, tend to reflect styles derived from Greek and Roman physicality and anatomical structure while others from the site of Mathura, usually carved from red mottled sandstone but also stucco, are more Indian in style; more lightly clad with smooth body types.