The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 20, 2025

Seated Buddha

400–430 CE

Northern India, Uttar Pradesh, Mathura, Gupta period

(c. 320-550)
red mottled sandstone
Overall: 82 cm (32 5/16 in.)
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund 1973.214
Location: Not on view

Description

This rare depiction of a seated Buddha from Mathura, datable to the first half of the 5th century, displays a new vision for the form of the Buddha, in comparison to the way he was depicted during the preceding Kushan period. His appearance remains otherworldly, but his form has relaxed and the cloth softened, as seen in the way the cascading hem falls from the arm over his left leg. Traces survive of the rearing griffins of his throne and his elegant halo, which was filled with scrolling vegetation-typical features of Buddha images from this period.
  • ?–1973
    (William H. Wolff [1906–1991], New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1973–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Liebert, Emily. “Julie Mehretu: Portals.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 62, no. 2 (2022): 12-13. Reproduced and Mentioned: P. 12.
    "The Year in Review for 1973." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 61, no. 2 (1974): 31–78. Mentioned: no. 195, pp. 58 and 79; Reproduced: no. 195, p. 59 www.jstor.org
    Czuma, Stanislaw. “Mathura Sculpture in the Cleveland Museum Collection.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 64, no. 3, 1977, pp. 83–114. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 100-101, fig. 28 25152680
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 290 archive.org
  • Julie Mehretu: Portals. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 16-November 13, 2022).
  • {{cite web|title=Seated Buddha|url=false|author=|year=400–430 CE|access-date=20 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1973.214