Weiner Mihályné szerk.: Az Iparművészeti Múzeum Évkönyvei 7. (Budapest, 1964)

HOPP FERENC MÚZEUM — MUSÉE FERENC HOPP - Tóth, Edit: Terracottas from the Gupta Period

EDIT TÓTH TERRACOTTAS FROM THE GUPTA PERIOD Terracottas are important and a frequently discussed topic in Indian art. Parallel with stone sculpturing ,and even before it, we find the production of clay figurines. They aid in forming a rather complete picture of the transition from the Indus Valley culture to the Indo-Aryan, in depicting a style in an age when stone carving not introduced in India and in which wood and bone carvings were destroyed. They reflect the changes of style in the later development of sculpture. When examining the figurines we may find a more or less continuous development and the possibility to give them an approximate dating for the majority of the figurines is from methodical excavations. Naturally it is more difficult to place those statuettes of accidental finds, illegal excavations or other unknown circumstances. It is not at all easy to classify early primitively sculptured figures, types of which survived for centuries. The difficult to distinguish Indus Valley, Post-Indus Valley an Pre-Maurya groups were treated with this in mind. And a hot debate arose among the various researchers on the criteria of classification.

1 The figurines of the Gupta period are considerably easier to place because, in addition to methodical excavations, their style is traceable to that of the monumental sculptures and literary remains provide several useful data to the costumes. The terracottas of our collection were donated to the Museum by Imre Schwaiger, an art-dealer residing in New Delhi and London, who sent them between 1932 and 1939. Their place of origin is unknown, therefore only on the basis of certain stylistic features can we attempt to date them and determine their theme in comparison to already treated types. The present study is indebted to the fundamental typological treatment of V. S. Agrawala.

2 The discussed pieces are made of yellowish or darker red earthenware and the reverse sides of the figurines are not or hardly worked. The first, the head of a man with an umbrella-shaped hair style, is a characteristic piece rather easy to classify. It is of rather soft, yellowishred terracotta 1 Codrington, K. de B. : in the Man. 1929., p. 100—101. Das Gupta, C. C. : in the Indian Historical Quarterly, Vol. XII. 1936., p. 138., Artibus Asiae XIII. 1950., p. 254., Ostasiatische Zeitschrift NF. XII. II. 5. 2 Agrawala, V. S. : Terracotta figurines of Ahichchaträ, District Bareillv, U. P., Ancient India, 4 (1948) p. 104 — 179.