An Amalgam of Cultures

 In the Cleveland Museum of Art's Asian collection there are a number of objects that come from a little known but fascinating time and place in history.  Gandhara was located in the present day countries of Pakistan and Afghanistan.  In 326 B.C. the region was conquered by Alexander the Great.  He left Greek officers behind to govern the area.  For nearly 300 Gandhara remained an eastern outpost of Greek culture.  In 50 B.C. the invading Parthians from present-day Iran put an end to Greek rule, but Hellenistic cultural traditions continued.  Even after the Kushans, a tribe from central Asia, conquered the region in A.D. 75, and Buddhism was introduced in A.D. 150, Greek influence in art survived.  Gandhara flourished as a major trading center on the Silk Road, and Roman merchants who came there added to the cultural mix.  Thus the museum's works from Gandhara definitely have a different look.  Images of Greek and Roman gods mingle with images of Buddha... and even the Buddhist sculptures  look a bit like Greek statuary.

This carving from the 3rd century shows the drunken revelry of a Bacchanalia, and the Roman god of wine, Bacchus, is probably the third figure from the left.

 Another Bacchanalian scene from the 1st century A.D.

Atlas, from Greek mythology, makes an appearance as a winged figure in this statue from the 3rd century.

This Bodhisattva (in Buddhism, a being who helps others achieve enlightenment) from the late 1st century, may be wearing Indian attire, but his muscular torso is reminiscent of Greek sculpture.

This standing Buddha from between A.D. 150 and 200 comes from the monastery of Takhi-i-Bahi which was one of the largest in Gandhara.  (Its ruins still stand in Pakistan and are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.)  The statue combines Indian and Greek elements, and the folds of his robe are similar to a Roman toga.

The next stop on our tour of the museum's Asian galleries will be China.