In the 13th Century the Thai race began leaving their homelands in China to establish settlements in neighboring countries. One such ancient Thai settlement threw off the Khmer yoke and declared itself to be independent. Known as the kingdom of Sukhothai, this settlement grew rapidly until it included most of what is today the kingdom of Thailand. It was at Sukhothai that the most beautiful and characteristic Thai art developed. The Thai adopted Theravada Buddhism from the Mons, and also incorporated their basic conception of image making; the art of Sukhothai is therefore closely linked to the art of Gupta, India. From the Khmer, the Thai learned not only many material skills and techniques, but also a deep affection for the great Indian epics, especially the Ramayana.
The expression on Sukhothai Buddha images is often wonderfully spiritual, the modeling fluid and graceful. The hair is arranged in spiral curls with a tall jet of flame (the equivalent of a halo) springing from the protuberance on top of the head. The face is delicately oval, the eyebrows arching, the nose aquiline. The body, though suffused with inner energy, is softly rounded on its surface with bulging breasts and prominent nipples. The Buddha image's arms are "as sinuous as an elephant's trunk" and the Buddha's hands "like lotus flowers just beginning to open," long and slender. The monastic robe is thin and clinging. The finest invention of Sukhothai is the "Walking Buddha," a figure that seems to have come to a momentary pause mid-stride, one heel raised while the other foot is firmly planted on the ground, one hand lifted in a gesture of giving instruction or dispelling fear, while the other arm is naturally at its side.
