________________
MONUMENTS & SCULPTURE A.D. 300 TO 600
(PART III
(3) In one case (AMM, B.44, plate 48) there appears on the forehead a circular mark looking like a pendant suspended by means of a narrow strip. Had it not been noticed on another almost contemporary figure of Ajitanatha from Varanasi (SML, 49.199, fig. VI), it could have been summarily dismissed as a later mischief done with the intention of providing a tilaka-mani to the Tirthankara. This mark, therefore, calls for special attention.
FIG. VI. Varanasi: head of Ajitandtha (SML, 49.199)
(4) Generally the eyebrows meet at a point above the nose; but this, occurring on a few specimens (SML, J. 59, head only; AMM, B. 53, 15.565, 29.1941, etc.), cannot be taken as a characteristic of the age.
(5) The eyeballs have not been usually depicted. A specimen from the Mathura Museum (AMM, B. 53) can be cited as a rare exception. A number of non-Jaina Gupta sculptures from Mathura also show that the depiction of eyeballs was not a common practice.
(6) Lips are ordinarily thick and elongated and ear-lobes often touch the shoulder.
(7) Normally the face is serene, but sometimes a happy smile is visible (SML, J. 207, B. 45, 67.189, etc.)
FRAGMENTARY PIECES
Such pieces, though belonging to this period, are quite fragmentary and difficult to group under any of the above classes. For example, SML, J.2 is only an inscribed pedestal dated in the year 299 (A.D. 377).
110
