Head of a Buddha

anonymous, 800 - 850

This head probably comes from one of the 504 Buddha statues placed on and around the great Buddhist monument of Borobudur. All these figures represent the Buddha seated, with his eyes cast down. The raised spot between the eyebrows, the urna, and the protuberance on the head, the ushnisha, signify the Buddha’s holiness.

  • Artwork typesculpture, Boeddha-beeld, hoofd
  • Object numberAK-MAK-239
  • Dimensionsheight 28.5 cm x width 24 cm x depth 26 cm

Identification

  • Title(s)

    Head of a Buddha

  • Object type

  • Object number

    AK-MAK-239

  • Description

    Fragment (hoofd) van een Boeddha.

Creation

  • Creation

    • sculptor: anonymous, Borobudur
    • sculptor: anonymous, Midden-Java

  • Dating

    800 - 850

  • Search further with

  • School / Style

Material and technique

  • Dimensions

    height 28.5 cm x width 24 cm x depth 26 cm

This work is about

  • Subject

Acquisition and rights

  • Credit line

    On loan from the Royal Asian Art Society in The Netherlands (gift of Willy van der Mandele, 1948)

  • Copyright

    Public domain

  • Provenance

    …; collection Daniël François Scheurleer; his son Constant Willem Lunsingh Scheurleer (1881-1941), 1927; purchased by Willy van der Mandele (1883-1951), 1928; collection Willy and Alida Christina Rabina van der Mandele-Vermeer (1891-1988); by whom given on loan (1928) and later donated to the Vereniging van Vrienden der Aziatische Kunst, 1948;{Note RMA.} from whom on loan to the museum, 1972

Documentation

    • Caroline en Josine van der Mandele, Willy van der Mandele; kunstverzamelaar tijdens het interbellum, Zwolle, 2020, nr. 105.
    • Jan Fontein, 'De vroege jaren van de vereniging: lezing nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst 2005', Aziatische Kunst 35/2 (2005), pp. 2-20.
    • Pauline Lunsingh Scheurleer, 'Het Rijksmuseum aan Zee; hemelse beelden uit Oost en West', Aziatische Kunst 38/1 (2008), pp. 23-25.
    • H.F.E. Visser, Kunst uit het Oosten, Amsterdam, 1953, pp. 48 en 132, pl. 84.
    • Archief van der Mandele: https://rkd.nl/nl/explore/collections/1052
    • William A. Southworth, 'The disembodied human head in Southeast Asian art', Aziatische Kunst 43 (2013) nr. 2, p. 27-30, afb. 3.
    • H.F.E. Visser, Asiatic art in private collections in Holland and Belgium, 1948, nr. 355, pl. 207.
    • Caroline A. Drieënhuizen, 'De kunst van te verzamelen: Koloniale verzamelaars en de VVAK', Aziatische Kunst 41/3 (2011), pp. 2-15.
    • T.B. Roorda, Choix de sculptures des Indes, Den Haag, 1923, pl. XII/XIII.
    • Rapti Miedema, 'Kop van een Boeddhabeeld', Aziatische Kunst 38 (2008), nr. 3, p. 29-30.

Persistent URL

Questions?

Do you spot a mistake? Or do you have information about the object? Let us know!
  • Head of a Buddha
  • Head of a Buddha
  • Head of a Buddha
  • Head of a Buddha
  • Head of a Buddha