A cross-cultural comparative study of Buddhist monumental art: the Borobudur Temple Complex (Indonesia) and the Dazu Rock Carvings (China)

This study presents a transnational comparative analysis of two UNESCO World Heritage complexes and their sculptural programmes: the Borobudur Temple Complex (Java, Indonesia; built c. 8th–9th centuries CE) and the Dazu Rock Carvings (Chongqing, China; major carving activity late 9th–13th centuries CE). Using qualitative methods that integrate stylistic, iconographic, and technical analyses based on visual and photographic surveys and published conservation studies, the paper examines how stone type, carving techniques, compositional strategies, and ritual frameworks shaped divergent sculptural languages. Results show that Borobudur’s mandala-based architectural order and narrative bas-reliefs—carved in volcanic andesite and largely experienced frontally along a prescribed circumambulatory route—favour shallow, sequential narrative modelling that supports didactic pilgrimage. By contrast, Dazu’s sandstone reliefs and near-full-round modelling enable deeper undercutting, more pronounced chiaroscuro, and a syncretic iconography that fuses Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian elements for localized devotional practice; traces of polychromy and gilding further differentiate its visual effect. The study demonstrates that material and technical constraints critically inform form, viewing geometry, and ritual use, and argues for context-sensitive conservation approaches. These findings advance comparative understandings of Mahayana sculptural practice and contribute to broader debates in global art history.