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Painted wooden panel showing riders with bowls into which birds dive, from Dandan-oilik, Khotan oasis, Xinjiang province, China, 6th CE.Before the advent of Islam in the 8th century, Khotan was a thriving kingdom along the Southern Silk Route. Dandan-oilik was a Buddhist sanctuary there and became Sir Aurel Stein's first excavation site in the Desert of Taklamakan. The panels are the best surviving evidence of the legendary Khotanese school of painting. OA 1907.11-11.70
#03060153

Painted wooden panel showing riders with bowls into which birds dive, from Danda...

An illustration to the "Ten Kings Sutra", late 9th,early 10th CE. The roll shows two of the ten kings, each sitting before a draped table attended by the Good and Bad Boys (recorders of a person's good and evil deeds during life).Virtuous couples, carrying sutra-rolls, and sinners in chains and large wooden collars are driven past by their goalers. OA 1919.1-1.080
#03060154

An illustration to the "Ten Kings Sutra", late 9th,early 10th CE. The roll shows...

Vaishravana riding across the waters, Five Dynasties, mid 10th century. Depicted patrolling his domain with heavenly troops; he holds a golden halberd in his right hand; his sister Shri Devi, Goddess of Material Blessings, precedes him. She holds a golden dish with flowers. The Garuda in flight represents the dark forces against which Vaishravana offers protection. Painting on silk. OA 1919.1-1.045
#03060155

Vaishravana riding across the waters, Five Dynasties, mid 10th century. Depicted...

Head of Vaishravana, Guardian King of the North. He is the most frequently represented of the four devarajas, the Guardian Kings of the points of the compass. Detail of 03-06-01/55.
#03060156

Head of Vaishravana, Guardian King of the North. He is the most frequently repre...

Painted silk headpiece from a banner, Five Dynasties or Northern Song Dynasty, 10th century. The almost identical images of the Buddha can be seen on both sides of the headpiece. Triangular headpieces were made by folding squares of silk diagonally and attaching them to the top of a banner. Sir Aurel Stein expesition. OA MAS 888
#03060157

Painted silk headpiece from a banner, Five Dynasties or Northern Song Dynasty, 1...

Avalokiteshvara as Guide of Souls, early 10th CE. He is identified by the figure of the Buddha Amitabha in the headdress of this figure. He is leading the soul of a female devotee to the halls of paradise, depicted by the three top nabds each with tiny buildings. He has a censer in his left hand and a long staff with a banner. OA 1919.1-1.046
#03060158

Avalokiteshvara as Guide of Souls, early 10th CE. He is identified by the figure...

Pair of wooden bodhisattvas, Chinese, Song dynasty, 10th. Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who chose to remain in the suffering world in order to help humanity. Unlike the modestly dressed Buddhas, bodhisattvas wear richly jewelled clothes. OA 1987.12-21.1-2
#03060159

Pair of wooden bodhisattvas, Chinese, Song dynasty, 10th. Bodhisattvas are enli...

Stoneware figure of Budai ("Laughing Buddha"), Chinese, Ming dynasty, 1486. The Buddha is glazed in the sanca (three colours) palette developed in the Tang dynasty (618-906) and which reappeared in the Ming period (1368-1644). The fat, smiling monk Budai is sometimes regarded as incarnation of the Future Buddha who followed Shakyamuni. OA 1937.1-13.1
#03060165

Stoneware figure of Budai ("Laughing Buddha"), Chinese, Ming dynasty, 1486. The...

View of Mecca and pilgrims. From a miscellany written for Jalal al-Din Iskandar ibn Umar Shaikh. Code: 0210005532
#03060343

View of Mecca and pilgrims. From a miscellany written for Jalal al-Din Iskandar...

A group of pilgrims on their way to Mecca. Code: 0210005584
#03060344

A group of pilgrims on their way to Mecca. Code: 0210005584

Sitting Buddha with aureole,teaching gesture. From the region of Dargal near the pass of Marakant between Peshawar and Swat,Gandhara, 3rd-4th CE Bronze
#030701 8

Sitting Buddha with aureole,teaching gesture. From the region of Darga...

Sitting Buddha with aureole,teaching gesture. From the region of Dargal near the pass of Marakant between Peshawar and Swat,Gandhara, 3rd-4th CE Bronze
#030701 9

Sitting Buddha with aureole,teaching gesture. From the region of Darga...