Head of a Bodhisattva

Description

This monumental male head must have originally belonged to a larger-than-life Bodhisattva image. The imposing turban is of the type worn by royalty, divinities, and nobility during the Kushan period from the first through third century. The round, fleshy face, heightened by a subtle smile, retains the powerful quality of early Kushan and pre-Kushan images of nature divinities, known as yakshas.

Provenance

Robert H. Ellsworth [1929–2014], New York, NY, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?–1984); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1984–)

Head of a Bodhisattva

[]

75–early 100s CE

Accession Number

1984.220

Medium

red sandstone

Dimensions

Overall: 50.8 x 25.4 cm (20 x 10 in.)

Classification

Sculpture

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Gift of Robert H. Ellsworth in memory of Christian Humann