Tibetan Buddhist sculptures

Author: Wang Jiapeng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-12-01
Features: The brave and wise Tibetan people have created a Tibetan Buddhist sculpture art with distinct ethnic characteristics and unique regional features. Tibetan Buddhism has numerous deities with strange appearances, including deities from the late Indian Buddhism-derived esoteric Vajrayana and Kalachakra traditions, as well as Tibetan indigenous Bon deities, as well as deities from the Han and Mongolian regions. The content of the sculptures is rich and varied. The materials used for the sculptures include clay, stone, wood, gold, copper, and others, with the most representative being gold and copper Buddha sculptures. Over a thousand years, craftsmen from various ethnic groups have created a large number of gold and copper Buddha sculptures, fully reflecting the artistic achievements of Tibetan Buddhist sculpture. The Forbidden City, as the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties, has, due to historical circumstances, preserved a large number of gold and copper Buddha sculptures of Tibetan Buddhism, making it the most comprehensive national museum in China outside the Tibet Autonomous Region. These collections were originally part of the Qing imperial holdings, gathering the essence of Tibetan Buddhist sculptures from all over the country, mainly including offerings from Tibet, Mongolia, and other regions, as well as court works from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Not only do they span a wide range of time periods and origins, reflecting the development of Tibetan Buddhist sculpture, but they also show the modeling characteristics and artistic achievements of different eras and regions. Moreover, they contain rich historical and cultural information, holding an irreplaceable position in the study of Tibetan Buddhist sculpture in China.