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Stela, 3D model

Work Description: Tall thin stela slightly rounded at the top in a dark limestone which has been weathered a golden brown. Both the obverse and reverse are in three registers with niches containing Buddhas and bodhisattvas. The inscription on the obverse gives the date as, "6th year of the Wuping period of the [Northern] Qi Dynasty, fourth moon, eighth day", which corresponds to May 3, 575 CE. The obverse shows Tushita Heaven at the top with Maitreya flanked by monks and bodhisattvas, and Sakyamuni and Prabuhtaratna Buddha in a small stupa above. The scene in the middle depicts a Buddha and a crowned bodhisattva with monks and bodhisattvas on either side. Between them stands a Buddha. Below this is a crowned bodhisattva underneath two trees flanked by monks, bodhisattvas, and pratyekabuddhas. The reverse side depicts Sukhavati, Amitabha Buddha's paradise, at the top, with reborn souls appearing in the foliage above the Buddha. In the center, Vimalakirti, a Buddhist layman, holds a fan as he debates with Manjusri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom amid a group of seated monks. Below this is a scene from the Lotus Sutra showing Prabhutaratna and Sakyamuni Buddhas preaching together side by side. The sides of the stela show eight Buddhas, a standing Maitreya (with crown) and standing Sakyamuni Buddha with six Buddhas of the Past beneath them (three on each side). This stela probably came from the Xiangtangshan caves in Hebei province.

550 - 577

Memorial Stele of Wang Zhen, ink rubbing

Work Description: Wang Zhen (died 1449) is the founder of the Zhihua temple. A powerful eunuch of the Ming dynasty court and close advisor to the emperor, he built the temple as his own private residence and later, around 1444, converted it into a Buddhist temple. This ink rubbing reproduces the carving on a stone tablet that once stood at the main entrance of the Zhihua temple. The white areas in the top left section are where court officials erased Wang Zhen’s name in the mid-1700s due to his indiscretions—he was held responsible for the defeat of the Ming army at a notable battle that led to the emperor’s capture by the Mongols. This incident ultimately led to Wang Zhen’s death.

1444

Stelae awarded by Ming Emperor Yingzong, stelae

Work Description: Located in Rulai Hall (Rulaidian, Tathagatha Hall or Shakyamuni Hall)

1462

Project