Collection Online as of September 23, 2023

Miniature Votive Stupa

c. 1000s

Part of a set. See all set records

Eastern India, Bihar

Bronze with inlay of semiprecious stones

Overall: 29.2 cm (11 1/2 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1982.132

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The spire consists of thirteen disk-like parasols that refer to the thirteen stages on the path to enlightenment.

Description

Small-scale stupas were modeled on large monuments that contain relics of the Buddha or revered members of the Buddhist community within the solid, dome segment. Such models were made to commemorate a devotional visit to the monument. Four different sacred Buddhist images face each of the four directions: Shakyamuni, Vajrasattva, Maitreya, and Prajnaparamita.

Provenance

?-1982

(Sara Tremayne, Ltd., London, UK, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1982-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Citations

Lee, Sherman E. “Year in Review for 1982.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 70, no. 1, 1983, pp. 3–55. Mentioned: no. 119, p. 54; Reproduced: no. 119, p. 29 www.jstor.org

Huntington, Susan L., and John C. Huntington. Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pāla India (8th-12th Centuries) and Its International Legacy. Dayton, OH: Dayton Art Institute in association with the University of Washington Press, 1990. Mentioned and Reproduced: fig. 50, p. 178

Leidy, Denise Patry, and Robert A. F. Thurman. Mandala: The Architecture of Enlightenment. New York: Asia Society Galleries, 1997. Reproduced: cat. no. 5, p. 55

Exhibition history

The Year in Review for 1982. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 5-February 6, 1983).

Sacred India. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 5, 1985-January 12, 1986).

Mandala: The Architecture of Enlightenment. The Asia Society Museum, New York, NY (organizer) (September 22, 1997-January 4, 1998).

Stories From Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).