The first ever Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Online Exhibition on Shared Buddhist Heritage was virtually launched by the Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu during the 19th meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of Government in November 2020 in New Delhi. (Prime Minister Modi did not attend the meeting.) The exhibition was developed and curated by the National Museum, New Delhi, in active collaboration with SCO member countries—China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. It connects the SCO countries to one another through Buddhist philosophy and art of Central Asia.

The highlights of this exhibition are as follows:

The exhibition is the first ever of its kind, which gives a glimpse of the artistic wealth, displayed in various museums across Asia. It represents the artistic excellence, embedded within an eclectic historical timeline spanning across the development of different schools of Buddhism.

It deploys state-of-the-art technologies like 3D scanning, web graphics library (webGL) platform, virtual space utilisation, innovative curation, and narration methodology, etc.

The exhibition enables the visitors to explore the Indian Buddhist treasures from the Gandhara and Mathura Schools, Nalanda, Amaravati, Sarnath, etc., in a 3D virtual format.

The Pakistan hall depicts the life of Gautama Buddha and Buddhist art through a collection of impressive Gandhara art objects from Karachi, Lahore, Taxila, Islamabad, SWAT and Peshawar museums, including fasting Siddhartha and footprint of Buddha from Sikri, meditating Buddha from Sahri Bahloi, miracle of Sravasti from Gandhara, etc.

The Buddhist Buriyat Art of Russia is depicted by over 100 objects from State Oriental Art Museum, Moscow through icons, ritual objects, monastery traditions, etc.

The Dunhuang Academy of China contributed a rich digital collection on Buddhist art from Dunhunag that includes ingenious architecture, resplendent murals, decorative designs, costumes, etc.

The Uzbekistan hall showcases the marvels of Buddhist art from ancient Termez, Karatepa, and Fayaztepa heritage sites. Visitors can see rare Buddhist art objects from various heritage sites and museums of Kazakhstan and Kyrygstan.

The Tajikistan hall exhibits the 13-metre-long reclining-Buddha in Nirvana from Ajina, Tepa.

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