Eastern Approaches

Dedicated to Klaus Fischer, former Professor of Indian Art at the Department of Oriental Art History in the University of Bonn, this book looks at subject areas ranging from Mongolia to Central Asia, from Bactro-Gandhara to the Indian subcontinent, and spanning 2000 years from the sixth century B.C. to the eighteenth century A.D. The unifying theme is Asia itself. Over a third of the essays were written by specialists residing there and, as is evident from the texts, most of the authors have conducted arduous field explorations. The structure of the text brings the reader into Asia from the west, through the ancient regions of Gandhara, Bactria, and Scythia. The first artistic themes treated relate to Mediterranean concepts in the East, which are followed by studies of Buddhist, Hindu, and Islamic subjects in the fields of architecture, sculpture, and painting.