Standing Buddha 100-300 AD

This statue of a standing Buddha, dating from between 100 and 300 AD, was excavated on 29th March 1891 by three Fifth Fusilier Officers serving on the North West Frontier of British India.  The Buddha wears a monk’s robe, and raises his missing right hand in a fear-dispelling gesture with open palm.  Major Dyke, Major Kilgour and Captain Eagar excavated the statue in a valley, once part of the ancient kingdom of Gandhara, on the Silk Road, the trade route which stretched from China to the Mediterranean: the sculpture shows the influence of Graeco-Roman statuary.