South, East, and Southeast Asia I

South, East, and Southeast Asia I

Period: 300 BCE to Apr 13, 1980

"Buddha Vairocana and Bodhisattva at Todaiji Temple. Nara, Japan. April 2015. - Picture of Todai-ji Temple, Nara - TripAdvisor." Reviews of Hotels, Flights and Vacation Rentals. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2017.
Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja) (article)." Khan Academy. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2017.
"Khan Academy." Khan Academy. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2017.
"Longmen Caves, Luoyang (article) | China." Khan Academy. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2017.

Terra cotta warriors from mausoleum of the first Qin emperor of China. Qin Dynasty. c. 221–209 B.C.E. Painted terra cotta.

221 BCE

Qin Shihuang, in order to achieve immortality, he built himself a tomb—a vast underground city guarded by a life-size terracotta army including warriors, infantrymen, horses, chariots and all their attendant armor and weaponry. The excavation uncovered a sprawling citadel with thousands of warriors, each designed with a unique face and clothing, they were created using an assembly production system that paved the way for advances in mass production and commerce.

Longmen caves. Luoyang, China. Tang Dynasty. 493-1127 C.E. Limestone.

493

The Central Binyang Cave was one of three caves started in 508 C.E. It was commissioned by Emperor Xuan Wu in memory of his father. The linear and abstract motifs are typical of the mature Northern Wei style.Low relief carving covers the lateral walls, ceiling, and floor. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions in the Fengxian Temple.

Todai-ji. Nara, Japan. Various artists, including sculptors Unkei and Keikei, as well as the Kei School. 743 C.E.; rebuilt c. 1700. Bronze and wood (sculpture); wood with ceramic-tile roofing (architecture).

Apr 12, 743

Todai-ji would be the chief temple of the Kokubin-ji system and be the center of national ritual. At its symbolic heart was the massive main hall also called the Great Buddha Hall, which when completed in 752, measured 50 meters by 86 meters and was supported by 84 massive cypress pillars. Today’s statue is a 17th century replacement of the one from the 12th century.

Angkor, the temple of Angkor Wat, and the city of Angkor Thom, Cambodia. Hindu, Angkor Dynasty. c. 800-1400 C.E. Stone masonry, sandstone.

Apr 12, 800

Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia is the largest religious monument in the world. It is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu who is one of the three principal gods in the Hindu pantheon, and the site is built entirely out of stone.The most important narrative represented at Angkor Wat is the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, which depicts a story about the beginning of time and the creation of the universe.

Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja). Hindu; India (Tamil Nadu), Chola Dynasty. c. 11th century C.E. Cast bronze.

Apr 12, 1001

In a religious Hindu context, the statue is the literal embodiment of the divine. The Chola period gave rise to a new kind of sculpture, one that combines the expressive qualities of stone temple carvings with the rich iconography possible in bronze casting. The ring of fire that surrounds the figure is the encapsulated cosmos of mass, time, and space, whose endless cycle of annihilation and regeneration moves in tune to the beat of Shiva’s drum and the rhythm of his steps.