Essay name: Scythian Elements in early Indian Art
Author:
Swati Ray
Affiliation: University of Calcutta / Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture
This essay studies Scythian Elements in early Indian Art鈥攁 topic that has not garnered extensive scholarly attention. Although much research has focused on various aspects of Saka/Scythian culture, such as politics and numismatics, their contribution to Indian art remains underexplored. This essay delves into archaeological evidence, historical texts, and art forms from Eurasian steppes to decipher the Scythian impact.
Chapter 4 - Scythian / Saka Art
75 (of 115)
External source: Shodhganga (Repository of Indian theses)
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specialization. An interesting gold belt plaque from the Lake Baikal area is
cast and hammered and it depicts a fantastic, horse like animal locked in
combat with a feline predator. The mythical creature has a beak-shaped
snout and antlers with seven tines, each of which terminates in a beaked
bird's head, as do the mane and long, curling tail. Empty space on the body
is filled with relief images of animals. The great feline disk from Arzhan
and the fine poletops from that site and from numerous Tagar finds offer
testimony that the predecessors of the Scythians had developed a
sophisticated understanding of bronze metallurgy.鹿 Since the Scythians did
not have palaces, they carried their wealth on their own bodies and ion the
regalia of their horses, their weapons and their utensils. Such an extreme
display of wealth and status seems to have been one of the characteristics
adopted by the Scythians during their Near Eastern sojourn.
Excavations in the old Nisa area in Turkmenistan (primarily a
Parthian site) shows sculptures made of unfired painted clay and some of
them are dressed in nomadic Scythian costume.2
I Art. Scy., p.247.
2G.A.Koshelenko, A.M.Bader, V.A.Gaibov, 鈥楢rchaeological Studies in
Turkmenistan', Anc. Civ. Scy. Sib., Vol. 1, p.273.
