Text, Folio 139 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)
14
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
14
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Text, Folio 139 (recto), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra) is a 14 unspecified by Unknown, a byzantine_iconography work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
This is a long, narrow wooden block covered in tiny, precise characters. The text is carved in neat rows, filling the entire surface. Two small holes line up at the ends, like you’d find on a ruler. The block looks like it’s part of an old book, but instead of pages, it’s a single piece of wood used to print text. This kind of printing was common in parts of Asia long before Europe had moveable type. Check out The Cleveland Museum of Art to see this up close.
