Alfred Charles Auguste Foucher, was a French scholar, who argued that the Buddha image has Greek origins. He has been called the "father of Gandhara studies", and is a much-cited scholar on ancient Bu
One of the first representations of the Buddha, Gandhara, in pure Hellenistic style and technique. Foucher considers such statues as Greek work of the 1st century BCE.
Aniconism
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Aniconism is the cultural absence of artistic representations of the natural and supernatural worlds, or it is the absence of representations of certain figures in religions. The prohibition of materi
Alfred Charles Auguste Foucher
…DAFA). Foucher's most famous work was L'Art Gréco-Bouddhique du Gandhara in which he described how Buddhist art prior to Pan-Hellenism was principally aniconic, representing the Buddha by depicting elements of the Buddha's life instead of depicting the Buddha himself. Foucher argued that the first sculpted…
An aniconic representation of Mara's assault on the Buddha, 2nd century CE, Amaravati, India.
Traditional flower offering to the aniconic Shiva linga in Varanasi
Persian miniature painting from the 16th century AD, depicting Muhammad, his face veiled, ascending on the Buraq into the Heavens, a journey known as the Mi'raj.
14th-century hagaddah depicting Moses leading the people (David Kaufmann collection)