Sikri: Life of the Buddha - Queen Maya’s Dream

PAKISTAN, Balochistan, Sikri; Kushan period

The Gandharan panel depicts Queen Maya’s Dream before giving birth to Prince Siddhartha. The queen lies on her side in bed, supporting her head on her hand. The room in the palace is represented by a decorated trapezoidal structure resting on pillars. The white elephant of which she is dreaming is above her surrounded by a nimbus. A long spear leans on the wall behind the queen, while a defaced female attendant stands at the foot of the bed. A Corinthian pillar on the left divides the scene from the one that followed on a separate panel.