A NEW INTERPRETATION OF A BUDDHIST IMAGE FROM AMARKUNDU, MURSHIDABAD

The purpose of this article is to identify a sculptural specimen of Khasarpana Avalokitesvara which has been incorrectly identified as Buddha by Sudhir Ranjan Das and the specimen is popularly known as Raghunath or Vishnu. While assigning a date to this specimen on stylistic ground, this Khasarpana Avalokitesvara appears to be similar with the Mahakali specimen of Khasarpana Avalokisvara kept in the National Museum of Bangladesh in Dhaka. Claudine Bautze Picron compared the stylistic features of various images and enabled grouping them within a specific chronological bracket through which the direction of the movement of stone carvers from Bihar to Bengal can be assumed between ninth to twelfth century CE. The Khasarpana Avalokitesvara of Amarkundu helps us bridge the temporal and spatial gap of transmission of stylistic features and understand their variations.