Walter M. Spink(February 16, 1928 - November 23, 2019) was an American art historian who was best known for his extensive study of

Buddhist art Buddhist art is visual art produced in the context of Buddhism. It includes Buddha in art, depictions of Gautama Buddha and other Buddhas and bodhisattvas in art, Buddhas and bodhisattvas, notable Buddhist figures both historical and mythical, ...

in India, particularly the

Ajanta Caves The Ajanta Caves are 30 rock-cut architecture, rock-cut Buddhist caves in India, Buddhist cave monuments dating from the second century Common Era, BCE to about 480 CE in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, Aurangabad district of Maharashtra sta ...

, a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. About his work on the Ajanta caves, scholars have acknowledged that his ideas "revolutionized the history of the site". He was a professor of art history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Biography

Spink was born in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...

and went to

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

, where he studied philosophy and Western art history, graduating in 1949. He then went to

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

where he was drawn to Indian art, after being influenced by Benjamin Rowland, who was among the first Western art historians to explore Indian art. At Harvard, Spink received his MA and then PhD in 1954 on the "Rock Cut Monuments of the Andhra Period". From 1956 to 1961, he taught at

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

, and thereafter joined

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, where he remained till his retirement in 2000.

Work on Ajanta Caves

Spink's major contribution was to interpret the

, a Buddhist complex of caves near

Aurangabad Aurangabad (), officially renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2023, is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a ...

, Maharashtra, that was carved between 2nd century BCE and 1st century CE. He started studying the complex in the 1950s, and analysed the caves for over four decades in almost 100 publications. The culmination of his research was the ''Ajanta: History and Development'' series published by

Brill Brill may refer to: Places * Brielle (sometimes "Den Briel"), a town in the western Netherlands * Brill, Buckinghamshire, a village in England * Brill, Cornwall, a small village to the west of Constantine, Cornwall, UK * Brill, Wisconsin, an un ...

in Leiden, Netherlands.

Books

* * * * * * *

External links

Website dedicated to the work of Walter M. Spink

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spink, Walter 1928 births 2019 deaths American art historians American art curators Brandeis University faculty University of Michigan faculty Harvard University alumni Amherst College alumni 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers 20th-century American male writers