Artwork

Text, Folio 134 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)

Text, Folio 134 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra) is an unspecified painting by the Byzantine icon painting artist Unknown. It dates from 14 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The object is a narrow wooden plate, its surface perforated with a regular array of minute holes forming a precise grid.

About this work

Overview

The object is a narrow wooden plate, its surface perforated with a regular array of minute holes forming a precise grid. The wood, a light brown and showing signs of age, serves as a durable substrate for the intricate pattern of openings that characterize the piece.

Subject & Meaning

The perforated board functions as a tool for reproducing text from the Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita‑sutra, a key Mahāyāna Buddhist scripture known as the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines. By aligning inked material with the holes, scribes could generate uniform characters, ensuring consistency in the transmission of the sacred verses.

Technique & Style

Crafted by hand, the board displays a systematic arrangement of equally spaced apertures, reflecting a meticulous approach to early printing technology. The uniformity of the grid suggests a standardized method for aligning characters, indicative of the sophisticated paper‑making and block‑printing practices of the period.

History & Provenance

Originating from a manuscript of the Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita‑sutra, the piece exemplifies the material culture of Buddhist textual production in East Asia. It is presently held by the Cleveland Museum of Art, which acquired it as part of its collection of historic printing implements.

Context

During the era when the sutra was widely copied, the use of perforated wooden plates facilitated the replication of complex scripts with numerous glyphs. Such devices were integral to monastic workshops, where the need for accurate, repeatable copies of doctrinal texts was paramount.