“artifac Of The Ancient World”
“Artifacts of the Ancient World”
The great civilizations of India, China, Japan, Africa and Mesoamerica left behind artifacts that are preserved in museums across the world. The Art Institute Museum, in Chicago, carries artifacts from each one of these great civilizations. One artifact from each civilization can and does best represent each civilization. But lets see what artifact best describes the civilization of India.
Present day India began on the Indus River in what is called the Indus Valley. This was one of the most powerful urban river civilizations in the ancient world. Around 2000 BCE a people called the Aryans came down from central Asia and moved into India. This period was called the Vedic period. “The Vedic period witnessed the formation of three of the four major enduring religions of India- Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism”.
One particular artifact at the museum that best represents the peoples of India would have to be the “Stele with Buddhas and Tara.” This stele depicts the eight events of Buddha’s life. Not only does this artifact represent an entire religion, but it also helps to see into the beliefs of a people. The artifact is a stele of Buddha standing with one arms palm out, and the other arm down at its side. Like Egyptian art, there was a canon of measurements that went along with sculpting a Buddha.
The span is the basic measure, or the distance from the tip of the middle finger to the tip of the thumb of the outspread hand. This was a measurement that was used to help sculpt the features of the Buddha. This distance corresponds to the space between the dimple in the chin and the hair-line. Each span has twelve finger-breadths.
All these measurements had to do with the religious aspects of Buddhism and the cosmic harmony measurements. The stele also represents the eight paths which are part of Buddhas first teachings. The eight paths are as followed. 1. Complete or Perfect...
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