Indian Art: A History of Indian Art from the Earliest Times up to the Third Century A.D. c14.16

c14.16

The next site on the grand route was Kāpiśī (mod. Begram), north of Hindukush, commanding the passes of India and Bactria, which was known to Pāṇini about the 5th cent. B C. and also to Kauṭilya, the latter mentioning its famous wines. At this site a number of carved ivory plaques which formed parts of treasure-chests or toilet-cases of women, were found, which are inspired both by the art style of India on the one hand and Hellenistic world on the other. Of true Indian inspiration are scenes of Aśoka-dohada showing a woman touching the Aśoka tree with her left foot and having the same kind of spiral mass of head-dress as seen in similar figures at Mathura and Amaravati. Prasādhikā, wearing a heavy necklace (Karatala-sthita sthūla-hāra-yaṣṭi, Kādambarī, Vaidya edn. para 80), toilet-scene (Prasādhana), dancing scene, drinking scene, flying geese, Śalākā-vātāyana derived from Padma-vara-vedikā type, Pūrṇa-ghaṭa, Haṃsa-Krīḍā or woman coaxing the Haṃsa bird with a lotus. Again in 1939-40, during a second excavation, many more plaques were discovered, showing toraṇa gateways with three architraves similar in style to those on the Āyāgapaṭṭas of Mathura with toileting scenes of women holding mirror and waterpot, pillars surmounted by animal capitals and inverted jars, row of elephants in the spaces between architraves recalling the elephants on the façade of the Lomas Ṛishi cave and a good number of other scenes of dance, music and domestic pastimes marked by much greater Indianisation similar to the Śalabhañjikā women on Mathura railing pillars. [Figs. 192-3]. Special attention may be invited to four scenes depicted on the obverse and reverse of plaques No. 46 and 49 (of Hackin's Report) in which a woman is wringing water from her long braid, which a Haṃsa bird is drinking with its beak (Keśanistoyakāriṇī mudrā), exactly similar to that on Mathura railing pillar No. M. M. 1509. On several plaques we find drinking scenes showing an intoxicated woman helplessly falling on the ground in half-kneeling attitude supported by her female companions recalling the Bacchanalian group of Maholi. Women playing on flute, or standing under Aśoka tree (Aśoka dohada scene showing the woman kicking the Aśoka tree with her right foot), a guardian holding a long lance, Full Vase, Vyāla-toraṇa brackets showing women riding on winged leoglyphs, capitals showing addorsed lions with male and female riders, fish-tailed tritons (Mahoraga). It is impressive to find in these plaques not only subjects of Indian inspiration but also the same plastic sensuality as is familiar on the pillars of Mathura railing. It is very probable that this school of ivory carving for which such profuse evidence has been supplied by Begram, originally flourished at Mathura during the Kuṣāṇa period.