Art & Architecture

Harappan

• Drainage system
• Rectangular intersecting roads
• Sanitary system

Mauryan

• Monolithic Pillars
• Finely carved capitols – Bull capitol and Sarnath capitol
• Stupas start during this period – 4 gateways
  • Surface built with bricks
• Viharas and Chaityas
  • Barabar Caves

Shunga – Satvahanas

• Early classic architecture
• Carved railings and gateways around Buddhist shrines

Kushan

• Sculpture developed
• The emperor himself was a divine authority
• Buddha was first time given a human form during this time

Gupta period

• Beginning of Hindu temples – temple at Deoghar, Udaigiri caves in Orissa
• Vaishnavite temple in Vidisha

Pallavas

• Mandaps, Rathas and finely carved panels and pillars
• Shore temple at Mahabs is a structural temple
• Ratha temple is a rock cut temple
• Kanchipuram also has temples
  • Panels depict shiva as Natraja
  • History of Pallavas

Cholas

• Tanjaur Temple: 65 m tall vimana
• Pillared halls and sculptures depicting Bharata’s natyashastra
• Fine paintings

Pandyas

• Built high outerwalls and gopuram
• Their gopurams can be seen from long distances

Hoysalas

• Belur and Halebeed temples
• Profusion of manifold pillars with rich and intricate carvings
• Panels depict gods and goddesses

Orissa Temples

• Lingraja temple
  • 40 m high
• Sun Temple

Nagara, Dravida and Visara

Table 1

Cave architecture

Progressed in three phases

• Buddhist Jain Ajivika caves (3^rd BC to 2^nd AD)
  • Kaneri, Nashik, Udaigiri
• Ajanta Ellora Cave (5^th to 7^th AD)
• Elephanta Ellora and Mahabs (7^th to 10^th)

Sculpture

Two major schools

• Gandhara
  • Greco-Roman Style
  • North West India
  • Stone and stucco
• Madhura
  • Indigenous style
  • UP Bihar
  • White spotted red sandstone used
  • Forms of Brahmanical deities crystallised for the first time in this art form

Themes of Buddha and Bodhisatvas in Both