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Directly below the Buddha appears to be the Third Karmapa (1284–1339), a religious leader who is famous for first compiling a set of one hundred jataka tales in the Tibetan language, presumably the very stories pictured here. His appearance helps date this painting. Scrolling floral patterns within the red halo, the dark-blue background, and some of the narrative cells, as well as the thin yellow lines that separate the scenes and demarcate the painting’s outer edges, are features drawn from Nepalese painting.
Buddha Shakyamuni and Stories of his Previous Lives
OriginTibet
Datemid-late 14th century
Dimensions59 1/2 × 46 7/8 in.
MediumPigments on cloth
Classification(s)
Credit LineRubin Museum of Art, Gift of Shelley and Donald Rubin
Object numberC2003.50.4
Himalayan Art Resources Number230
DescriptionThis remarkable painting portrays the Buddha with more than a hundred stories of his previous lives (jataka) organized into a geometric grid. One such scene, found in the top-left corner, shows him sacrificing himself to feed a hungry tigress and her starving cubs. The narrative scenes closest to the central Buddha figure depict his deeds during his final life as Prince Siddhartha, during which he achieved enlightenment or awakending (bodhi).Directly below the Buddha appears to be the Third Karmapa (1284–1339), a religious leader who is famous for first compiling a set of one hundred jataka tales in the Tibetan language, presumably the very stories pictured here. His appearance helps date this painting. Scrolling floral patterns within the red halo, the dark-blue background, and some of the narrative cells, as well as the thin yellow lines that separate the scenes and demarcate the painting’s outer edges, are features drawn from Nepalese painting.
Not on view
Late 17th-18th century
late 18th-19th century
17th - 18th century
18th century
ca.1500
19th century
19th century