A rare Gandhara head of a 'Fasting Buddha' Gandhara-region/Pakistan, 3rd/4th cent. Grey schist. Exquisitely carved head of a fasting Buddha with deep-set eyes and plastically emaciated neck. Detailedly worked beard, the curly hair dressed to a central knot (ushnisha).The head backed by a large nimbus. At the bottom mounted to a black lackquered wooden base. H. 36 cm. - The life-size measurements and the extraordinary quality of the piece suggests that it once was part of an overwhelming statue. See a smaller head in the coll. of the British Museum, London (Inv. Asia OA 1907.12-28.1, Lit.: Zwalf, A Catalogue of the Gandhara Sculpture in the British Museum, London 1996, vol. I, p. 171 and plate VIII). The full beard and the mild facial expression take away the harshness of the emaciated physiognomy. Herein it shows a close resemblance to the preserved Fasting Buddha in the Lahore Museum, Pakistan. See: Masterpieces of the Lahore Museum, Lahore 2006, p. 125.