Artwork
Text, Folio 111 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 111 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra) is an unspecified painting by Unknown. It dates from 14 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
The work is a painted folio, identified as Folio 111 (recto) from a manuscript of the *Ashtasahasrika Prajñāpāramitā*—the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines. Executed on a narrow, tan parchment with rounded edges, the page is divided into three panels, each containing a grid of compact black characters arranged in rows of varying length.
Subject & Meaning
The painted surface functions primarily as a textual carrier, presenting excerpts from the Buddhist *Prajñāpāramitā* sutra. The dense arrangement of characters suggests a devotional or scholarly purpose, intended for recitation or study within a monastic setting.
Technique & Style
The artist employed ink on parchment, using a precise, linear hand to render the characters in uniform black strokes. The division into three sections creates a balanced composition, while the clean, geometric layout emphasizes clarity and order, characteristic of East Asian manuscript illumination.
History & Provenance
The folio originates from a larger codex produced for a Buddhist community, likely in the medieval period of East Asian manuscript production. Its survival as an individual painted page indicates it was separated from the codex, possibly for exhibition or scholarly study, before entering a museum collection.
Context
The *Ashtasahasrika Prajñāpāramitā* was a central text in Mahayana Buddhism, widely copied and illustrated across China, Korea, and Japan. This folio reflects the tradition of integrating visual art with sacred writing, reinforcing the textual message through disciplined visual arrangement.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
Text, Folio 99 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, folio 49 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 69 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 128 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 108 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 119 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, folio 52 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 123 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)