Description
From the Preface
The Valley of Kathmandu has been the seat of ancient art and culture of Nepal for over two thousand years. It is most likely that the antiquity of stone sculpture in Kathmandu Valley goes back to the 1st century B.C. or the 1st century A.D. if not earlier. The Yaksha image found at Hadigaon almost four and half decades ago or the recent discovery of Jaya Varma at Maligoan bearing an inscription and date of Saka Samvat 107 corresponding to A.D. 185 or horde of ancient images found in Kathmandu Valley including the Mother Goddesses indicate an early beginning of stone sculpture. Hence, we may broadly devide the antiquity of Nepalese stone sculpture on the following categories: Kushana Period (B.C. 1st century to A.D. 2nd century), Pre-Licchavi Period (A.D. 3rd century to 4th century), Licchavi Period (A.D. 5th century to 8th century), Thakuri Period (A.D. 9th century to 11th century), Early Malla Period (A.D. 12th century to 14th century) and Malla Period (A.D. 15th century to 18th century).
Lain S. Bangdel (b. 1924) graduated from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Calcutta in 1945. He then went to Paris and studied art at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts, Paris (1952-57), and undertook research on the history of European art in London (1958-60). His Late Majesty King Mahendra nominated him a member of the Royal Nepal Academy (1961). In 1974 he was nominated Vice-Chancellor of the Royal Nepal Academy by His Majesty King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev and was further nominated as the Chancellor (1979-1989).
Lain S. Bangdel is one of the leading authorities on Nepalese art. He has written a number of books and articles on Nepalese paintings and sculptures, as well as novels, travelogues and biographies of great European painters. He is the author ed Early Nepalese Art (German Edition, 1987), and Stolen Images of Nepal (1989). He was also a visiting Professor at the Denison University, USA, where he taught South Asian art (1968-69).
Bangdel has received numerous national and international awards, for his contributions to Nepalese art and culture, such as the Birendra Gold Medal, Dulichand Gold Medal, including foreign decorations from Great Britain, Italy, France and Spain. As a modern artist, Bangdel is also regarded as a towering figure in the field of contemporary art in Nepal.
