Artwork

Text, Folio 68 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)

Text, Folio 68 (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.

About this work

Overview

This artwork is a detail from a manuscript page, specifically Folio 68 (recto), of the Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra, a Buddhist text known as the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines. The piece features a rectangular, light-brown wooden surface with densely packed, horizontal lines of text in an intricate, foreign script.

Subject & Meaning

The subject is the written text of a significant Buddhist scripture. The dense arrangement of the intricate script underscores the complexity and profundity of the Buddhist teachings embodied in the Prajnaparamita-sutra, which focuses on the perfection of wisdom, a key concept in Mahayana Buddhism.

Technique & Style

The text is rendered in a meticulous, finely detailed script, characteristic of manuscripts intended for study and preservation of sacred knowledge. The smooth, light-brown wood provides a clear backdrop for the densely packed, horizontal lines of writing, emphasizing legibility and reverence for the text.

History & Provenance

Specific historical and provenance details for this folio are not provided, though it is part of a broader tradition of manuscript production in ancient India or possibly Southeast Asia, given the script style, which was common in regions influenced by Indian Buddhism during the medieval period.

Context

This manuscript page would have been part of a larger religious or scholarly collection, used for both devotion and the study of advanced Buddhist doctrines. Its creation reflects the importance of written texts in the dissemination of Buddhist teachings across Asia.