The book "Outline of Chinese Sculpture Art" written by Mr. Yan Wenru, a famous archaeologist in my country, said that after the introduction of Buddhist statue art into China, it experienced four peak periods - Wei, Tang, Song and Ming dynasties.

Mr. Yan Wenru, a famous archaeologist in my country, , wrote in the book "Outline of Chinese Sculpture Art" that Buddhist statue art has experienced four peak periods after being introduced to China - Wei, Tang, Song and Ming.

Wei is the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties , which was the first peak of Chinese Buddhist statue art. The Buddhist statues of this period express a very lofty, sacred and solemn beauty, which we have briefly analyzed in the previous article.

The second peak period of Buddhist statues was the Tang Dynasty . Speaking of this period, everyone will think of the Feitian in Dunhuang, the graceful and magnificent Bodhisattvas in the Dunhuang murals, and the Wu Zetian and the Luchena Buddha stone sculptures in the Longmen Grottoes. This period embodies the beauty of a wealthy and graceful aristocracy.

Starting from this article, we begin to discuss the Buddhist sculpture art in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

The Sui Dynasty was a transitional dynasty, a dynasty that connected the past and the next. It inherited the Wei and Jin Dynasties and started the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The Northern Zhou defeated the Northern Qi and unified the north. The Sui Dynasty smoothly replaced the Northern Zhou and established another unified dynasty.

The Sui Dynasty was only 37 years old. Because Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty believed in Buddhism, the development of Buddhist statues during this period quickly showed diversity, but did not form a unified style pattern. Although there are many changes across the country, they mainly follow some styles of previous dynasties such as the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

Standing Buddha statue in the Sui Dynasty, collected by the Metropolitan Museum of America

Figure 1 Standing Buddha statue in the Sui Dynasty, collected by the Metropolitan Museum of America,

The bust of Buddha that we see now is a standing bust of Buddha from the Sui Dynasty collected in the Metropolitan Museum of America. This statue is made of white marble and comes from the Quyang area of ​​Hebei Province. This statue has distinct characteristics of the previous dynasty, with the simplicity and elegance of the Northern Qi Dynasty and the richness of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. It can be seen that this is an artistic masterpiece inherited from the previous dynasty statues in the Sui Dynasty.

The hair of this statue is carved with large water ripples, which is a change of Gandhara hair style. Although the face is plump and thin, the expression is calm and elegant. The expression of shallow eye sockets is no longer the deep eye sockets carved in the past. This treatment is a distinct localization feature. What’s even more interesting is the low-cut collar style, through-the-shoulder attire, which uses double-engraved negative lines to express the clothing pattern, which is another variation of the Mituluo style.

Comparison of the two Buddhas of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and the Sui Dynasty

Figure 2 Standing Buddha statue of the Sui Dynasty, collected by Xi'an Forest of Steles Museum

Figure 3 Standing Buddha statue of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, collected by Xi'an Museum

Figure 2 is a Buddha statue from the Sui Dynasty, and Figure 3 is a Buddha statue from the Northern Zhou Dynasty. There is not much difference between the two statues.

Buddhism flourished in the Sui Dynasty. After first inheriting the style of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Buddhist statues developed with realistic and beautiful shapes.The main characteristics were plump, solid, elegant and dignified.It laid the foundation for the glorious Buddhist art of the Tang Dynasty.

Sui Dynasty lacquer Buddha statue in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of America

Picture 4 Sui Dynasty lacquer Buddha statue in the Metropolitan Museum of America

Picture 5 Sui Dynasty lacquer Buddha statue in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of America Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of America

The statue you see now is a large lacquer Buddha statue of the Sui Dynasty collected in the Metropolitan Museum of America. This statue is thin and simple, but different from the thin and clear statues of the Wei and Jin Dynasties. It is more intimate and realistic, and its expressiveness is more vivid. This was the more popular style of Changan at that time. This is also the earliest bound lacquer Buddha statue discovered. It can be seen that the diversity of materials used after the Sui Dynasty has enriched the expressive power of Buddhist statues and sculpture art. This is also more conducive to the promotion and spread of Buddhism.

"Ji Zhi", as a traditional Chinese handicraft, has developed and matured in the 4th century AD. Craftsmen first use mud or wood to make the core of the image, and then wrap it repeatedly with layers of linen impregnated with lacquer. After lacquering, it is re-applied many times, and finally the inner tube is emptied. This complicated production process requires expensive materials, and the lacquer is highly dependent on the climate and environment in which it is operated. Only royal nobles or large temples have such economic strength.

Sui Bodhisattva standing statue The Xi'an Beilin Museum is in the collection of

Figure 6 Sui Bodhisattva standing statue The Xi'an Beilin Museum is in the collection of

This is a Guanyin Bodhisattva standing statue with a clean bottle in the Xi'an Beilin Museum. It is a relatively exquisite work during the Sui Dynasty.

barrel-shaped body, round face, and silk accessories are portrayed in more meticulously. It is an exquisite Sui Dynasty-style statue.

Sui two Bodhisattva statues collection

Figure 7 Sui two Bodhisattva statues collection

Figure 8 Sui two Bodhisattva statues collection

Figure 8 Sui two Bodhisattva statues collection

collection

collection

The carvings of these two Bodhisattva statues collection fine and complicated , including the head crown worn and the delicate and complicated garment carvings, which are quite different from the previous dynasty.

There are not many statues in the Sui Dynasty. These two statues that are both complete and exquisite are very rare.

Sui Bodhisattva’s head unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an. The Xi'an Beilin Museum is

The heads of the statues from the Sui Dynasty are relatively round and full, and this statue has a deep impact on future generations. The head crown of the Bodhisattva statues in the Sui Dynasty was generally simpler, nor was it a high crown. The full faces of all directions are very generous, which inherits the statue style of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and lays the foundation for the statue style of the Tang Dynasty in the future.

Figure 9 Sui Bodhisattva’s avatar unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an, Xi'an Beilin Museum,

Figure 10 Sui Bodhisattva’s avatar unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an, West

Figure 11 Sui Bodhisattva’s avatar unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an,

Figure 11 Sui Bodhisattva’s avatar unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an,

These three statues are the avatars of the Sui Dynasty unearthed from Leshanni Temple in Chang'an, or a treasure trottered hair, or a treasure flower , a treasure flower , or a low crown of beads, and the hair bun is mostly in a bead style or a double ring style. The face is plump, sweet and peaceful, and is a typical Sui Dynasty style.

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