2nd-4th century AD. A group of fifteen stucco human and animal heads of various sizes, comprising: a dog's head; Buddha heads, some with remaining pigmentation; figures wearing elaborate headdresses and turbans; one head with European facial features, basin-cut hairstyle and moustache. 2.3 kg total, 4.4-13.5cm (1 3/4 - 5 1/4"). Property of a Middlesex collector; acquired on the London art market before 2000; formerly in an old English collection. Gandharan sculpture was produced in parts of modern-day India, Pakistan and Afghanistan from the first century AD. Gandharans are famed for their schist and stucco carvings, which replaced schist as the dominant material in the circa 3rd century AD, in part because stucco allowed artists greater freedom to portray lifelike features. Religious sites were decorated by skilled artists with stucco representations of important individuals and religious scenes. Some monumental statues had stucco hands, feet, and heads alongside clay torsos. During this time, Gandhara was exceptionally wealthy, profiting from trade along the Silk Road; patrons had resources to spend on the arts, and there was a proliferation of stucco artwork. [15]