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0441 Serindia : vol.2
Serindia : vol.2 / Page 441 (Color Image)

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doi: 10.20676/00000183
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Sec. ii] LIST OF PAINTINGS, TEXTILES, ETC., FROM CHIEN-FO-TUNG 939

hips and falls in heavy folds over legs. Legs from hips bent to spectator's L.; at knee flexed, L. lower leg passing behind R. in common attitude of flying Gandharvi. Lower drapery boldly but naturalistically rendered by deeply incised grooves. Fig., in particular flesh parts, carefully finished. Whole shows traces of thin coat of light brown lacquer. Very fine work. H. 8". PI. XLVII.

Ch. oo8. Wooden statuette ; male (?) fig. standing upright. Head, arms, and feet made separately and missing (dowel holes for head and L. arm). Body, nude to below navel. Here skirt of heavy drapery tied tightly round loins, contracting body ; it makes short overfall, and lower part descends in straight heavy folds to ankles ; ends of girdle hang down in front almost to edge of drapery. Carefully finished but poorly designed work. On flesh parts all tool-marks are smoothed away, drapery left rather more rough. Folds of garments, stiff, symmetrical, and insufficient ; body ill-proportioned and anatomical divisions hard and stylized. Traces of dark paint. H. 61". Pl. XLVII.

Ch. oog. Painted silk banner with head-piece of figured silk ; all streamers lost. Banner of pale grey silk gauze, broken about top and bottom. Otherwise well preserved, and colours fresh. For descr. of figured silk see below.

Subject : Bodhisattva (unidentified) with censer. Fig., short and broad, stands facing spectator on blue lotus, head turned slightly towards L. shoulder ; R. hand raised holding smoking censer ; L. arm also bent at elbow and forearm extended, hand open and fingers spread (third bent). General type as *Ch. oor, and dress and jewels same in main but less skilfully treated.

Instead of scarf across breast, Bodhisattva wears under-robe as in *Ch. 002, and also additional scarf made of flat-shaped band of figured material. This scarf hangs in loop from shoulders to waist-level, and again from arms to knees in long V-shaped point, the extra length thrown in loop over L. arm. The skirt is pink with folds outlined in red, and lower border of dull blue and lemon yellow ; overfall is white edged with plum-colour ; girdle white ; under-girdle a flat band of crimson edged with lemon yellow and orn. with spot pattern of rosettes in white and blue. Under-robe crimson with olive and yellow border ; stole a gauzy transparent veil of soft dull blue ; the scarf crimson with a spot flower pattern in green and lemon-coloured edge, the reverse side green with gold flowers ; jewels and tassels blue and green. Tiara carries over forehead large purple bud, behind which spring two scarlet lotus buds with white flower between them resembling pheasant-eyed narcissus.

Face has low forehead with long narrow protruding nose, and broad projecting jaws and chin crookedly drawn. Eyes almost straight, their setting marked by semicircular line round. inner corner. Top-knot in double leaf form. All the flesh tinted pink and outlines drawn in black, except inner side of hands and ears, soles of feet, and edge of lower eyelid, which are red. Eyebrows are a green line over black. Censer is of gold, with long handle, and round bowl with spreading foot.

Lightness of general effect is preserved by pale tone of silk itself and transparent washes in which colours of flesh and more voluminous garments are applied. But the fig. is overloaded by the innumerable scarves, streamers, and draperies, and there is a lack of predominant hues and lines. The colouring is excellently preserved. For Bodhisattvas with the same attribute and pose of hands, see Ch. 0083 ; i. 005. 2' 81' x roff". Pl. LXXIX.

Ch. oog. Head-piece of thick figured silk, with border of fine putty-coloured silk, cane stiffener sewn to lower edge, and yellow silk suspension loop at top. One Chin. char. on border. Figured silk, woven in firm satin twill with fine warp and broader untwisted weft, shows part of Sassanian pattern. On old-rose ground rows of elliptical medallions with old-rose field and borders of bright green, set out horizontally across material; rows about r" apart and medallions in each all but touching each other laterally. Alternating with them rows of smaller indented quatrefoil panels, occupying spandrels between opposing arcs of each four medallions.

Green medallion borders orn. with large hexagonal white discs ; within, pairs of confronting deer, standing on flat symmetrical base like palmette cut flat across the top. They are striding, have heavy branching horns and long tails, and are woven in deep orange-yellow, bright green, old-rose, and white. Treatment stiff and conventional, with stepped edges throughout. The bodies (here not seen) preserved in another fr. of same material, Ch. 00359. a, where they are shown to have indented quatrefoil rosettes in reddish pink, white, and green on shoulder and haunch.

Spandrel panels have green ground, on which similar pairs of confronting geese woven in same colours as deer. Tips of their wings strongly curved up, and both their legs visible, although otherwise they are seen in strict profile. Their heads well characterized, distinguishing them from equally striking ducks of Ch. 00359. b.

Material excellently preserved and colours bright and fresh. For further remarks on relation of design to others in Collection, and to Sassanian stuffs from other sites, see above, pp. 908 sq. Base of head-piece i' 3", h. 8*". Figured silk as preserved, PI. CXI ; reconstructed design from this fr. and Ch. 00359. a, Pl. Cxv.

* Ch. ooio. Painted silk banner, representing Lokapàla.

General Note.

Among the twenty-four Lokapâla banners in the Collection,

two classes of figs. may be roughly distinguished. But they differ only in style of treatment and in detail, the general character of figs. and armour being essentially the same throughout. The two styles, also, are intermingled in many of the banners.

The original type of fig. appears to be that fully described

under Ch. xxvi. a. oo6 ; other instances are found in Ch. xlix. 007 and lv. 005. The origin of the elaborate form of defensive armour represented is certain, but it has been suggested that it was not Chinese, though frequently reproduced in China and Japan in the Tang period. (See Laufer, Chinese Clay .Figures, Pt. r, pp. 30o-1, Pls. LI sqq.,

61)2