Early Buddhist Art
Artist: unknown
Title: Mahabodhi Temple, west side, modern shrine of the tree
Material: Stone & brick
Site: Bodh Gaya, India
Current Location: Bodh Gaya, India
Period/Date: Complex history
Iconography/Iconology: The pitha (seat) of the enlightenment
of Sakyamuni Buddha. This temple and the tree are objects of pilgrimage
that many Buddhists throughout the world seek to visit and to take darshan
(participating by visiting and seeing) of Sakyamuni Buddha's enlightenment.
Stylistic Comments: The railing seen in the photograph is a modern
reproduction of an early railing style (Sunga period: ca. 2nd century-1st
century B.C.E.).
