The Quality of Transcendence: The Stupa Reliquary, Pakistan, Gandharan Region, 2nd century CE (Word count 2062)

The Stupa Reliquary currently housed in the Alsdorf Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago was produced around the second-century AD in the Gandharan region, of what is now Pakistan. Relatively small in size (30.5 cm X 19.7 cm X 19.1 cm) compared to the imposing pieces surrounding it in the gallery, the Stupa Reliquary has a magnitude and importance about it that immediately draws one’s attention to it. The piece is the embodiment of regality, nobility, and holiness. It represents a form of art that seeks to depict the dimension of the transcendent. In other words, the Stupa Reliquary represents a type of view, in which earthly and material remains are oriented towards a transcendent and vertical plane of existence. That is to say that the piece, as a reliquary, functions as a housing of the remains of religious figures, yet because of the nature of religion itself, the relics contained within bear a sacred or transcendent element. This is an interesting piece, but it is difficult to understand without considering the background of the piece. This research will explore the context of the Stupa Reliquary to obtain a better understanding of the piece. It will focus on its function, origins, audience and how its design relates to a central Buddhist symbol. The present paper will argue that the Stupa Reliquary through its very composition, function and design attempts to capture precisely how the material world may turn itself towards