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On Ancient Central-Asian Tracks : vol.1 |
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with in Graeco-Buddhist relievos, it appears highly prob-
able that these figures of the Miran dado must be traced
back to the young winged Eros of Greek mythology as their
ultimate ancestor. But this descent lay, no doubt, through
intermediate stages, influenced by Oriental conceptions.
To put it quite plainly, the figures of the Miran dado
curiously suggest an affinity to the angels of some Early
Christian church. But it is well to remember that the idea
of angels as winged celestial messengers was familiar to more
than one religious system of Western Asia before the rise
of Christianity.
Nowhere in the Hellenized Near East do we know at
present of graphic representations of angels from a suffici-
ently early age to throw light on the question as to where
and when the cupids of classical mythology underwent
transformation into the type of winged figures seen on the
Miran dado. But it is easy to explain how those angels came
to figure in the decoration of a Buddhist shrine on the very
confines of true China. The Graeco-Buddhist sculpture of
Gandhara shows that figures copied from the winged Eros
were actually used there to represent that class of celestial
attendants which Buddhist mythology has borrowed from
early Hindu lore and knows by the name of Gandharvas.
If a visitor to the Miran shrine ever cared to enquire from
its guardians about the significance of these winged beings
so curiously reminiscent of figures he might have seen
before in distant regions like Syria, Mesopotamia or
Western Persia, the local guardians could readily have
labelled them Gandharvas.
But we may well feel in doubt as to whether this icono-
graphic explanation is really needed, for on excavating
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571
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