Tree & Serpent- A unique show at NYC’s The Met hauls in the rarest Buddhist stone carved art from elusive regions of South India
With more than 125 works of art which have never been exhibited outside India, the ‘Tree and Serpent’ at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York sheds a light on origins of Buddhist art in India, while putting the masterpieces from South India at its centre.
Opened at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on July 21, 2023, the exhibiton is named after two significant motifs in Buddhist art, the sacred bodhi tree and the protective snake, Tree & Serpent devotional works produced in the Deccan from 200 BCE to 400 CE. In contrast to traditional narratives, which reflect on northern India, this unique exhibition presents Buddhist art from monastic elusive sites in south India.
Here are some singular works of art on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Take, for instance, the Saddanta-jataka(of the elephant ‘Six Tusks’) drum panel, dating back to the 1st century BCE, from Kanaganahalli, Sannati, Gulbarga district, Karnataka. It depicts a scene from ajatakatale, with hunter Sonuttara presenting the tusks of Chaddanta, the king of elephants and the Bodhisattva in disguise.
Become a Premium Member to access our exclusive contents: https://authindia.com/premium-community-membership/ 
Then there is the sculptural rendition of the monolithic wish-fulfilling tree from Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh, 2nd century BCE, on loan from the Indian Museum, Kolkata. “The tree is enclosed in a wicker railing underscoring its sanctity, and around the trunk are jars and sacks of coins, represented as the square punch-marked type circulating in the early centuries bce,” states the catalogue.
The enclosure railing at Bharhut, the ceremonial gateways at Sanchi, and the first copings at Amaravati are the earliest and best preserved of their kind from the early Buddhist world.They are rich in visual narrative, using their surfaces as tableaux for the storytelling that made Buddhism accessible to a wide community of believers.
Stupa drum panel with protective serpent, Amaravati Great Stupa, Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, Sada, second half of 1st century CE, Limestone (British Museum, London).
Gateway architrave with makara, India, Bharhut Great Stupa, Satna district, Madhya Pradesh, Shunga, ca. 150‒100 BCE, Sandstone (lent by India Museum, Kolkata).
Amidst fascinating works of limestone are the Gateway architrave with makara, and the Āyaka platform panel with the Buddha in meditation venerated by nāgarāja Mucalinda and his clan Nagarjunakonda, from Guntur district, in Andhra Pradesh.
Railing pillar fragment: yaksha with lotus vine emerging from its mouth, India, Bharhut Great Stupa, Satna district, Madhya Pradesh, Shunga, ca. 150 ‒ 100 BCE, Sandstone.
Installation view of ‘Tree and Serpent: Early Buddhist Art in India, 200 BCE – 400 CE’.
As per Max Hollein, Director, The MET, the assembly of rare early Buddhist works of art, including a number of objects that have recently been excavated from monastic sites in India, and have never before been publicly exhibited. “It is our privilege to present these outside India for the first time,” says Hollein.
