Buddhist Art: Did you mean...?

Remains of a Buddhist monastery around the Dharmarajika Stupa. The rectangular cells are thought to be rooms where the monks slept. The yellow structure visible in the background is a relatively modern Jain temple. Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh...

Remains of a Buddhist monastery around the Dharmarajika Stupa. Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh, India, 3rd century BCE.

Throughout the history of the ancient Mediterranean artists were always keen to express their appreciation of the bounty of the sea. Marine life of all kinds, real and imagined, was frequently depicted on frescoes, pottery, mosaics and coins...

The first non-functional human-made objects that could be clearly classified as art date back to the Upper Paleolithic (c. 50,000 to c. 12,000 years ago) in Europe. Although Upper Paleolithic art is mostly associated with rock art, besides...

The Gandhara Civilization existed in what is now Northern Pakistan and Afghanistan from the middle of the 1st millennium BCE to the beginning of the 2nd millennium CE. Although multiple major powers ruled over this area during that time...

This fragment comes from Stupa B23, which used to be located at the Monastery of Bagh-Gai (facing southwest) in Hadda, Aghanistan. It dates from the 3rd-4th centuries CE. (Musée Guimet, Paris)

Elephants were thought of as fierce and frightful monsters in antiquity, very real though rarely seen until the Hellenistic period. They were deployed on the battlefield to strike terror into the enemy, however, since fear was considered...

The large cast-bronze bell known as the Emille Bell at Bongdeoksa, Unified Silla Kingdom, Korea. It was cast in 771 CE to honour King Seongdeok. 3.3 metres tall and over 2.2 metres in diameter, it is decorated with lotus flowers and heavenly...

The Yakushiji temple, located in Nara, Japan, is the headquarters of the Buddhist Hosso sect and one of the most important temples in the country. Originally founded in 680 CE at Fujiwara-kyo but then relocated to Nara in 718 CE, its famous...

In this gallery, we look at striking examples of art from across the African continent. In gold, stone and metals, ancient and medieval African artists have not only given us unique pieces of art to admire but their works are also an insight...