S C U L P T U R E O F I N D I A
Buddhist sculpture in India did not start in the lifetime of the Buddha, and in fact did not appear until the 2nd Century BCE. This earlier period was known as aniconic, meaning that the Buddha was not represented in human form, but was depicted by symbols of himself, such as an empty throne, Buddha’s footprints, Bodhi Tree, or the Dharma wheel.
In the 3rd or 4th Century, there was an influence in the robes of the Buddha from Classical Greco-Roman styles, which were brought to India by Alexander the Great and his troops, who arrived in 327 BCE. In modern day Pakistan and Afghanistan, which in the 2nd Century CE was called Gandhara, all the Buddhist figures show the Greco-Roman influence.
The major influence of sculpture in Tibet comes from Nepal— after the Muslim invasion of India in the 11th and 12th Century, influence in all forms of art from India was severed at that time.
