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The Death of Buddha
Tibetan
Late 18th century
Object Place: Tibet
Medium/Technique
Distemper on cotton
Dimensions
67 x 49 cm (26 3/8 x 19 5/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Bernat
Accession Number48.274
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAsia
ClassificationsPaintings
DescriptionPainting with decorative borders, mounted on support panel. Would have originally been in thangka format.
At the center, Shakyamuni Buddha reclines on a bed surrounded by followers. In the foreground, on follower cries while another consoles him. above and below, set in a landscape, are additional scenes relating to the Buddha's death: at upper left is the cremation, at upper right is the veneration of the ashes, at lower left is the Buddha's arrival at Kusinara (where he died) and at the lower right is the bathing of his body after death.
At the center, Shakyamuni Buddha reclines on a bed surrounded by followers. In the foreground, on follower cries while another consoles him. above and below, set in a landscape, are additional scenes relating to the Buddha's death: at upper left is the cremation, at upper right is the veneration of the ashes, at lower left is the Buddha's arrival at Kusinara (where he died) and at the lower right is the bathing of his body after death.
InscriptionsOn obverse, in Tibetan, in gold, small inscriptions identifying the surrounding scenes.
Provenance1948, Paul and Helen Bernat, Milton, MA; 1948, gift of Bernat to the MFA. (Accession Date: March 11, 1948)