Indian Art: A History of Indian Art from the Earliest Times up to the Third Century A.D. c15.s2.t2.2

c15.s2.t2.2

The Stūpas were built in all sizes; the smallest being 20' in diameter and the biggest Mahāchetiya 120'. In the smaller Stūpas, the central hub took the form of a square pillar, but in larger ones it was circular. After the brick-work and mud-filling was finished the exterior of the Stūpa was plastered with lime, the technical process being known as sudhākamma and the truncated top crowned with umbrellas known as chhatrakamma. At the base was a drum and above it the oval dome gradually rising to a towering height of 60 to 90 feet in proportion to its diameter. At the level of the height of the drum were four projecting platforms (āyaka-mañcha or mañjūshā) with a row of five pillars (āyaka-khambha), which was a distinguishing feature of all the Āndhra Stūpas as already stated.