53549 - History of Art of India and Central Asia

Learning outcomes

Acquisition of a sound basic knowledge in the history of Indian, Himalayan and Tibetan art.

Course contents

The course illustrates features of the religious artistic production in the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia through the projection of about 1800 slides to be commented during a total of 60 hours of lesson.
1-2 Bodhgaya and Sarnath: the places of Shakyamuni’s Awakening and first preaching. 3 The stupa of Bharhut and the site of Bhaja. 4 The Buddhist site of Sanchi and the cave temples of Karli. 5-6 The cave temples of Ajanta. 7 The cave temples of Aurangabad and Ellora. 8 Sculpture under the Pala and Sena dynasties. 9 The temples of Khajuraho. 10 Kashmirian sculpture. 11-12 Early monasteries in western Tibet. 13-14 The earliest monasteries in Ladakh and the caves of Dungkar. 15-18 The temples of Alchi. 19-20 The caves at Saspol and the temple of the Guru a Phyang. 21-23 The Nepal Valley: cult and iconography of Vishnu. 24-25 Cult and iconography of Shiva. 26-28 Cult and iconography of the Goddess and other Hindu deities. 29-30 The stupas of Svayambhu and Bodhnath. 31-32 Buddhist monasteries in the Nepal Valley. 33-34 The earliest Buddhist temples in Tibet. 35-36 The Jokhang in Lhasa. 37-38 The monastery of Samye. 39 The necropolis of Chiongye. 40 The monastery of Drathang. 41 The monasteries of Drigung and Sakya. 42-43 The temples of Kyangpu and Yemar. 44-49 The monastery of Shalu. 50-51 Gyantse and its castle. 52-54 The monastery of Gyantse. 55-56 The Great Stupa of Gyantse. 57-58 Painting in the 20th c.: materials and tecniques. 59-60 Sculpture in the 20th c.: materials and tecniques.

Readings/Bibliography

Works of a general character (compulsory reading):

- C. Sivaramamurti, India - (Ceylon - Tibet) - Nepal, Torino, 1984, pp. 1-73, 79-105, 117-147, 204-229 and 352-460.

- A. Heller, Tibetan Art, Milano, 1999.

 

Monographic works (one by choice):

- M. Bussagli, L'arte del Gandhara, Torino, 1984;

- A. Chayet, Art et Archéologie du Tibet, Paris, 1994;

- R. Goepper, Alci. Il santuario buddhista del Ladakh. Il Sumtsek, Milano, 1996, only together with D. Snellgrove e T. Skorupski, The Cultural Heritage of Ladakh, vol. 1;

- D. Jackson, A History of Tibetan Painting, Wien, 1996;

- D. & J. Jackson, Tibetan Thangka Painting. Methods & Materials, London, 1984;

- D. Klimburg-Salter, Tabo, a Lamp for the Kingdom, Milano, 1997;

- C. Luczanits, Buddhist Sculpture in Clay, Chicago, 2004;

- F. Ricca, Il tempio oracolare di gNas-chun, Alessandria, 1999;

- F. Ricca & E. Lo Bue, The Great Stupa of Gyantse, London, 1993;

- M. Shepherd Slusser, Nepal Mandala, Princeton, 1982;

- D. Snellgrove & T. Skorupski, The Cultural Heritage of Ladakh, Warminster, 1977 e 1980, 2 vols.;

- G. Tucci, Indo-Tibetica. I. Mc'od rten e ts'a ts'a nel Tibet indiano e occidentale, Roma, 1932 (also available the English version published in India).

 

Reference works:

Lokesh Chandra, Buddhist Iconography, New Delhi, 1991;

M.-T. de Mallmann, Introduction à l'iconographie du tântrisme bouddhique, Paris, 1975;

G. Tucci, Tibetan Painted Scrolls, Bangkok, 2000, 3 vols.  

Teaching methods

Sixty hours of lessons with projection of slides.

Since 10 credits correspond to 250 hours of work, students attedending the lessons will have to reckon 205 hours of study (60 hours of 45’ lessons correspond to 45 hours of work) and students not attending the lessons will have to reckon 250 hours of study for their preparation to the exam. Students wishing to take the exam in May must start its preparation since February.

Assessment methods

Candidates must be thoroughly competent in all the texts taken to the exam and be able to identify, date and comment any image reproduced therein. Since 12 credits correspond to 300 hours of work, students following the course will have to reckon 255 hours of study (60 hours of 45’ lessons correspond to 45 hours of work) and students not following course will have to reckon 300 hours of study for their preparation. Students wishing to take the exam in May must start preparing it since February. Candidates will be tested orally on the two compulsory texts and on a monographic work, which may be different from those listed above only if its choice has been accepted by the lecturer. Examinations will take place in May, June, November, December, January and March.

Teaching tools

Slides selected by the lecturer and plans in photocopy.

Office hours

See the website of Erberto Lo Bue