67.Dharma-wheel pilaster

  • ca. early 3rd century
  • Andhra Pradesh, possibly Ghantasala, Krishna district
  • The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

This panel depicts the stepped capital of a tall commemorative pillar surmounted by the Buddhist wheel of the law (Dharma-wheel), a revered element of early Andhra Buddhist monasteries and the principal metaphor of the Buddha's teachings (Dharma). The wheel is supported by two lions. Its radiating spokes are framed by a ring of lotus petals, and garlands hang from the capital beneath in celebration of the Buddha's teachings. The panel probably formed the upper section of a slender pilaster decorating the platform (āyāka) that projected from the stūpa. A vertical tenon joint on its rough-hewn reverse enabled it to be locked into place between two larger panels.