Last Existence: Archery Competition; male figures

Part of a relief with two superimposed registers, the lower depicting a scene from the Competitions, the upper a row of male figures. The two registers are separated by a row of lozenges and ovals between upper and lower plain. The lower scene was originally encased by framed half-columns of the Gandharan-Corinthian type. The base consists of a projecting plain fillet. The back face shows marks of chisel. The lower scene depicts the Archery Competition. Siddhārtha engages in an archery competition in which he is asked to use a bow nobody could bend to shoot an arrow at a distant target, succeeding in front of the audience. A male figure, probably Siddhārtha, is standing towards his left back turned. He holds a compound bow in his left hand, the right is stretching the bowstring. He wears a long dhotī with an uttarīya wrapped around the waist. The chest is exposed. A quiver with a cylindrical bag is depicted on his right. A tree with upward branches and an indistinct circular object, possibly a target, are carved on the left. The upper scene shows three standing male figures – only the feet of the right one are preserved. The figure in the center is holding a shield in his right hand, the figure on the left a bunch of flowers. They are all possibly wearing short tunics.