Courtesan: Relief, 2nd Century A.D.

On the obverse of the Maholi Bacchanalian group, the reverse of which we saw in slide 21, the drinking party has gotten under full sway as we can see, by the attitude of the lady in the foreground of the relief, who is assisted to her feet by a male figure and a kubjika (serving or attendant) girl, In the background, another female attendant (whom V,S, Agrawala identifies as a hermaphrodite) raises her right hand to her mouth in surprise, This Bacchanalian sculpture, and the others like it found in and near Maholi, was found in association with a colossal Bodhisattva indicating a possible acceptance on the part of the Buddhist community of the occasional rivalry between neighboring towns, at which time parties, such as those carved on the stones, might have taken place, This is at least suggestable since the same Yakshas and Yakshis playing the roles of the Bacchanalian group were traditional figures for Buddhist art, and their significance does not change with respect to their narrative backgrounds in either case, -- New Delhi, Central Asian Antiquities Museum