Site mapAbout usConsultative CommitteeAsk LibrarianContributionCopyrightCitation GuidelineDonationHome        

CatalogAuthor AuthorityGoogle
Search engineFulltextScripturesLanguage LessonsLinks
 


Extra service
Tools
Export
Chinese Steles: Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symbolic Form
Author Wong, Dorothy C. (著)
Date2004.10
Pages226
PublisherUniversity of Hawaii Press
Publisher Url http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/
Content type書籍=Book
Language英文=English
Keyword佛教人物=Buddhist; 佛教藝術=Buddhist Art; 宗教象徵=religious symbolism
AbstractBuddhist steles represent an important subset of early Chinese Buddhist art that flourished during the Northern and Southern Dynasties period (386-581). Adapted from the traditional Chinese stone tablet (bei) used for carving Buddhist images, symbols, and allegorical stories, this hybrid form epitomizes the close interactions and synthesis of indigenous Chinese and Indian Buddhist traditions on many levels: religious, social, cultural, and artistic. The phenomenon of Buddhist steles lasted only about a century (from the late fifth through the sixth century), yet this brief period yielded many works of superb artistic quality. These steles also offer important insights into the role Buddhism played in the history and culture of early medieval China and the process of adaptation and transformation by which the foreign religion was assimilated into Chinese society and became part of its civilization.
More than two hundred Chinese Buddhist steles are known to have survived. Their brilliant imagery has long captivated scholars, yet until now the Buddhist stele as a unique art form has received little scholarly attention. Dorothy Wong rectifies that insufficiency by providing in this well-illustrated volume the first comprehensive investigation of this group of Buddhist monuments. She traces the ancient roots of the Chinese stele tradition and investigates the process by which Chinese steles were adapted for Buddhist use. She arranges the known corpus of Buddhist steles into broad chronological and regional groupings and analyzes not only their form and content but also the nexus of complex issues surrounding this art form--from cultural symbolism to the interrelations between religious doctrine and artistic expression, economic production, patronage, and the synthesis of native and foreign art styles. In her analysis of Buddhism's dialogue with native traditions, Wong demonstrates how the Chinese artistic idiom planted the seeds for major achievements in figural and landscape arts in the ensuing Sui and Tang periods.

Considering the use of the upright stone by artists in many civilizations, this study of traditional Chinese bei and their Buddhist adaptations contemplates subjects that transcend the steles' own time and place, thus entering the larger discussion of the nature of symbolic forms.
ISBN082482783X; 9780824827830
Related reviews
  1. Book Review: "Chinese Steles : Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symbolic Form", by Dorothy C. Wong / Howard, Angela Falco (著)
  2. Book Review: "Chinese Steles. Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symbolic Form," by Dorothy C. Wong / Kuo, Li-ying (著)=郭麗英 (au.)
  3. Book Review: "Chinese Steles: Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symboilc Form", by Dorothy C. Wong / Cheng, B. (評論)
  4. Book Review: "Chinese Steles: Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symbolic Form," Dorothy C. Wong. / Reinders, Eric (評論)
  5. Book Review: Chinese Steles: Pre-Buddhist and Buddhist Use of a Symbolic Form / Pettit, Jonathan (評論)
Hits868
Created date2005.02.04
Modified date2021.11.05



Best viewed with Chrome, Firefox, Safari(Mac) but not supported IE

Notice

You are leaving our website for The full text resources provided by the above database or electronic journals may not be displayed due to the domain restrictions or fee-charging download problems.

Record correction

Please delete and correct directly in the form below, and click "Apply" at the bottom.
(When receiving your information, we will check and correct the mistake as soon as possible.)

Serial No.
367653

Search History (Only show 10 bibliography limited)
Search Criteria Field Codes
Search CriteriaBrowse