Artwork
Text, Folio 33 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 33 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra) is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1119 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The object is a slender wooden panel, its surface densely covered with incised characters that occupy every available space.
About this work
Overview
The object is a slender wooden panel, its surface densely covered with incised characters that occupy every available space. The carving forms a continuous block of script, arranged in orderly rows across the length of the strip. The wood shows signs of age, including wear and small metal pins that once held the pieces together.
Subject & Meaning
The engraved text is a passage from the Buddhist Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines, known in Sanskrit as the Ashtasahasrika Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra. This sutra expounds the doctrine of emptiness and the path toward ultimate insight, forming a central component of Mahāyāna Buddhist literature.
Technique & Style
Each character was cut directly into the wooden substrate with a fine tool, producing a uniform, linear script characteristic of early manuscript carving. The precision of the incisions suggests a skilled hand familiar with the conventions of Buddhist scriptural transcription in a pre‑printing era.
History & Provenance
The panel represents a single folio from a larger codex that once comprised the complete eight‑thousand‑line sutra. Its current condition—worn wood and remnants of fastening pins—indicates it has been separated from the original volume, likely during later disassembly or conservation efforts.
Artist & collection
Text, Folio 8 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 38 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 37 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)