interesting observations there - thank you.
you may be interested in this discussion:
it refers to a jataka story where the buddha responds to ananda’s question about whether a shrine can be constructed of him.
the translation of the original pali appears to be something like:
No, Ānanda, not a shrine of physical relics; that kind is made when a Buddha enters Nirvāna. A representative (symbolic) shrine is baseless and is merely selfish attachment. But the great bo-tree used by the Buddhas is fit for a shrine, be they alive or be they dead.
that passage appears to state then, that:
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a shrine of bodily relics (the buddha’s body parts and physical use items) is appropriate after a buddha’s death
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however, shrines that are symbolic or representative (i.e., statues and paintings) are not appropriate because they are really just self-based attachment
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the bo true is however always suitable as an object of veneration of the buddha
this seems to have been the way the buddha was revered in the centuries immediately following his death. only with the manufacture of statues in greece did the practice of representative buddha images come about.