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The Pictorial Language of Kucha: Local Innovations in Kucha's Artistic Workshops

  • Ines KONCZAK-NAGEL (Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Leipzig) ;
  • Monika ZIN (Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Leipzig)
  • Published : 2025.12.31
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Abstract

Murals are the most important source of our knowledge about the ancient Kucha culture. In the monastic complexes with around 600 preserved caves, approximately 200 were cult temples decorated with paintings. The majority of these paintings represent narrative scenes illustrating stories from the life of Buddha or his previous births. Most of them are depicted in relatively small pictures arranged in rows on walls and vaults. In a single temple, one may easily encounter 100 or more stories. In order to depict so much narrative material, a complex visual language was developed, which-although based on South Asian models-was greatly expanded. In some cases, to establish new iconography, the artists rendered textual descriptions with remarkable fidelity. Once invented, an iconographic convention was subsequently used to illustrate further narrative topics. The greatest innovation of the Kuchean painters is the depiction of the content of a sermon within the scene representing the preaching Buddha. Examples used in this essay include the special iconography of King Prasenajit, the empty nimbus of the Buddha, the parable of four poisonous snakes, and the man carrying a bowl full of oil, knowing that his head will be cut off if he spills a drop.

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References

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