Artwork
Text, Folio 73 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 73 (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. The object is a narrow wooden block, measuring roughly the size of a folio, with three parallel rows of raised dots.
About this work
Overview
The object is a narrow wooden block, measuring roughly the size of a folio, with three parallel rows of raised dots. The wood exhibits a light brown hue, while the tactile dots appear in a darker tone, forming continuous lines that resemble a script rendered in a tactile format.
Subject & Meaning
The raised-dot lines encode text from the Buddhist scripture known as the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines, or the Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita‑sutra. By presenting the sutra in a tactile medium, the piece reflects a historical effort to make sacred literature accessible beyond visual reading.
Technique & Style
The block was produced by carving minute, uniformly spaced depressions into the wooden surface, creating raised dots that can be felt with the fingers. This method parallels early forms of tactile printing, predating modern Braille, and demonstrates a precise, repetitive carving technique suited to reproducing extensive textual passages.
History & Provenance
The wooden block originates from a manuscript tradition that employed tactile printing for religious texts. It is now part of the collection at the Cleveland Museum of Art, which holds several comparable objects illustrating similar production methods.
Context
During the period when the Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita‑sutra was widely copied, various cultures experimented with alternative scripts to broaden accessibility. This block exemplifies such experimentation, reflecting the intersection of devotional practice and material innovation in manuscript culture.
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 70 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 73 (verso), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 29 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 27 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 60 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
Text, Folio 7 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)