These two sculptures depict the Roman’s view of a youthful Hercules, bearded and not bearded (AD 68-98). One has a lions hide draped over Hercules arm while the other shows him wearing the hide over his head and tied around his neck. Wearing the skin of a beast shows the strength of Hercules; more powerful than a lion. These statues are inspired by Greek myths and art. The sculpted lion hide reminded me of the lion carcass brought up in the story of Samson from the Holy Bible. In this story Samson is strong like Hercules, killing a lion for getting in his way.

This sculpture shows the view of Hercules in the eyes of the Pakistani (the ancient region of Gandhara). The small size of this stone work can hardly be compared to the detailed statue created by the Romans. However, I found it interesting that in this depiction Hercules isn’t wearing the lion hide but we see him wrestling with the lion. Hercules hasn’t quite conquered him but we are still shown his bravery.

Sara Neher

The fifty-four paintings were used to depict practices of the All-Knowing Buddha Vairochana. The process of rituals is explained through illustration since the paintings lack classifying captions. The fifty-four paintings have been divided into six groups based on the general outline of the ritual being portrayed. Above is a picture from the fourth group: contemplating the life of the Buddha. The paintings in this category depict the unusualness of the deeds of the Buddha. The specific painting I focused on shows miracles performed by the Buddha including: taming a wild elephant which led to the prevention of the schism of his followers, the miracle of multiplication where he converted five non-believers, and the miracle of a monkey giving him a bowl of honey upon which he announced his impending death. In the cultural context provided, the monkey is described as playful. This was one of the only paintings that reminded me of Monkey King. In the story Monkey, Monkey King is described as always standing up to authority and always creating some kind of mayhem. I found the announcement of the impending death of the monkey in the painting similar to the wager that the Buddha presented to Monkey King in chapter 7 of Monkey.

-Sara Neher