Creation of the drawings of the Bamiyan mural paintings and its Art-historical study

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K00184
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 01060:History of arts-related
• Research Institution: Ryukoku University
• Principal Investigator: Miyaji Akira 龍谷大学, 公私立大学の部局等, 研究員 (70022374)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 岩井 俊平 龍谷大学, 公私立大学の部局等, 准教授 (10392549)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: バーミヤーン / 仏教石窟壁画 / 大仏 / 中央アジア壁画美術 / アフガニスタン仏教美術 / 中央アジア文化交流 / 太陽神ミスラ / 弥勒信仰

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Using photographic data taken before the destruction, we created a 1/10th scale photographic development of the wall paintings on the niches of the East and West Great Buddhas in Bamiyan which were destroyed, and based on this, completed precise drawings (ink on Japanese paper); 1 width for the East Great Buddha and 5 widths for the West Great Buddha. These drawings clarified the entirety and details of the mural paintings in the niches of Great Buddhas, paving the way to further thematic and iconographic studies of the murals, which had remained obscure. Through comparative research of documents and examples, we clarified the ceiling mural of the East Great Buddha represents the Iranian sun god Mithra as the principal, while the ceiling and side murals of the West Great Buddha represent the Tushita Heaven of Maitreya and one thousand Buddhas of this Wise Aeon (bhadra kalpa). These results have been published in articles and an exhibition catalogue listed below.

Free Research Field

仏教美術史学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

バーミヤーン二大仏の仏龕壁画の精密な描き起こし図によって壁画の図像学的研究が大きく進み、ゾロアスター教の太陽神ミスラと弥勒上生信仰とが深く関わっていることが明らかとなり、学術的な意義は極めて高い。また、精密な描き起こし図の完成は、バーミヤーン文化遺産の保存と、今後の復興においても大きな役割を果たすことが期待され、その国際的、社会的な意義も大きい。