书名：Elephant Kingdom: Sculptures from Indian Architecture / 大象王国：印度建筑中的雕塑
定价：250.0
ISBN：9781890206963
作者：Vikramajit Ram
版次：1
出版时间：2007-08

内容提要：

书名：Elephant Kingdom: Sculptures from Indian Architecture / 大象王国：印度建筑中的雕塑
作者：Vikramajit Ram
出版社：Mapin Publishing，2007年
装帧：平装，104页
语种：英文
尺寸：约 22.9*28.0 cm（9 x 11 英寸）
ISBN：978-81-88204-68-7

简介

自古以来，大象就被视为终极的驮兽而备受珍视与宠爱，被尊为神祇和君王的坐骑，甚至其本身也受到崇拜。它们的力量、智慧、高贵和长寿等传奇品质，在神话、史诗和民间文学中广为传颂。在具象与装饰艺术中，大象始终散发着持久的魅力。

《大象王国》通过印度建筑雕塑中对大象的描绘，追溯了这种深受印度人喜爱的动物背后的无数故事与象征意义。研究的核心是一组超过六十幅彩色照片，取材自多种古老环境，其中许多位于印度次大陆的偏远地区。在数百年历史的寺庙、修道院、堡垒和宫殿中，大象装饰着仪典入口、点缀着柱身与柱头、构成楼梯的栏杆，或作为广阔庭院的谜一般哨兵矗立。有的大象是梦境与救赎传说中的角色；另一些则演绎着被忠实观察的自然史场景。有的将国王和英雄载入战场与狩猎；还有的则是带来雨水、丰收和好运的天界信使。从宏伟的独立雕塑到精巧的叙事饰带，这些描绘所蕴含的温度与能量，见证了无数无名工匠的成就。本书是作者多次前往那些大象仍以石头形式长存之地旅行的成果，它不仅是一本印度独有的灵感与母题集，也记录了这些雄伟——如今也濒危——的动物界巨兽所被赋予的特殊地位。

Since ancient times, they have been treasured and pampered as the ultimate beasts of burden, venerated as the vehicles of gods and kings and even worshipped in their own right. Their legendary attributes of strength, intelligence, nobility and longevity are eulogized in myth, epic and popular literature. In the figural and decorative arts, elephants provide an enduring fascination. Elephant Kingdom traces the myriad stories and symbolisms behind India's much-loved animal, through its depictions in architectural sculpture. At the heart of the study is a collection of photographs from a diversity of antique settings—many of them in remote parts of the subcontinent. At centuries-old temples, monasteries, forts and palaces, elephants flank ceremonial entrances, enrich columns and capitals, form balustrades to stairways or stand as enigmatic sentinels of vast courtyards. Some are legendary characters in tales of dreams and salvation; others enact scenes from a faithfully observed natural history. Some transport kings and heroes into battle and the hunt; others are celestial messengers of rain, fertility and good fortune. From monumental freestanding sculptures to finely-worked narrative friezes, the warmth and energy of these depictions bear testimony to the achievements of countless anonymous artisans. The result of a series of journeys to places where elephants still endure in stone, this book is not only an album of inspirations and motifs unique to India, but also a record of the special status ascribed to these majestic—and now endangered—giants of the animal world.