Indian sculptures from Gupta period on display in China
BEIJING: Luo Wenhua, the curator of an exhibition of ancient Indian and Chinese sculptures at the iconic Forbidden City in Beijing, crisscrossed India for two years to check 19 museums to select the exhibits.
The scholar of Buddhism and Sanskrit was focused on the Gupta period between 400 and 700 CE (Common Era).
He handpicked 56 sculptures of that era from nine Indian museums to be exhibited in China for more than a year – the Beijing exhibition at the Palace museum, to be followed by exhibitions in three other cities.
The exhibition titled “Across the Silk Road: Gupta sculpture and their Chinese counterparts between 400 and 700 AD” is the first such display of ancient Indian sculptures at the Palace museum.
It has been attracting a steady flow of visitors since the inauguration earlier this week.
The exhibits, which have been insured for about Rs 350 crore, were brought to China in two flights, packed tightly in specially made foam and then in wooden boxes. “The Indian exhibits are a mix of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain sculptures. It showcases the different artistic styles of the period,” Luo said.
A parallel exhibition of 107 carvings from China’s Tang dynasty of the same period provides a chance to compare and contrast – especially the sculptures of Buddha. While the Indian collection has seven different Buddha statues, the Chinese has 34.