Indian Sculpture c9.182

c9.182

An early instance of this treatment is to be seen on a bronze bowl. (Coomaraswamy, ‘An Indian Bronze Bowl,’ *Ostasiatische Zeitschrift*, 1930, p. 247, Pl. 33.) The facial type, with its sharply projecting features, results from the general conduct of lines. They are nervy and precise, with a tendency towards angularity, although the appearance of these Yakṣas goes back to chubby Indian prototypes. The central circle with the lion is reminiscent of Sassanian textiles, while the outline of the back of the animal can be seen in a relaxed and sculptural version in the statue of a lion (amongst others) standing near the Kāṇḍārya Mahādeva temple at Khajurāho of the year 1000 approximately. The bowl is to be dated about A.D. 600 (cf. Coomaraswamy), and belongs to the western school.