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Railing coping
India, Bharhut Great Stupa, Madhya Pradesh
Not on view
The inventiveness of the sculptors of the Bharhut Great Stupa is exemplified by this fragmentary section of a railing coping. Narrative vignettes framed by a meandering lotus vine likely illustrate jatakas—tales of the Buddha’s former lives as a bodhisattva (an enlightened being that refrains from entering nirvana in order to help others). Displays of wondrous gold jewelry typical of the Mauryan-Shungan periods (ca. 320–30 BCE) bracket each scene. In the center, rosette medallions, ear ornaments, amulet containers, and auspicious emblems hang from the mouths of lotus flowers. The lotus vine functions in the same manner as the wish-fulfilling tree, granting all desires; both miraculous plants flourish in Indra’s heaven. The beaded lower border supports a frieze of bells, their clappers visible, as if for ringing by passing devotees.
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