Text, Folio 15 (verso), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra)

unspecified

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Byzantine icon painting Classical Antiquity Religious

Dominant colour

Text, Folio 15 (verso), from a Manuscript of the Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines (Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita-sutra) is a 14 unspecified by Unknown, a Byzantine icon painting work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Unknown
When & what style?: 14 · Byzantine icon painting
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This looks like a wooden board with three narrow sections of tiny, evenly carved squares. Each section is packed with rows of identical shapes—like a grid of tiny windows or blocks. The wood is light brown, and the squares are dark, almost black. The carving is so precise it looks like it might be part of an old book or religious text. The squares might be letters or symbols, but they’re too small to read clearly. Check out The Cleveland Museum of Art to see this up close—they have the full story.