Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c12.45

c12.45

There are several other small chaitya halls at Junnar, not apsidal, but consisting of rectangular chambers without pillared aisles and with a stupa at their further end; their exteriors contain neat little vestibules with pillars *in antis* similar to those at Bedsa although on a much smaller scale. Light is admitted into the chamber through the doorway, as the chaitya arch although forming part of the facade is not perforated. In another group on this site, that of the Ganesh Lena (No. 6), there is one chaitya hall, small, yet so perfect in its design and production as to merit special reference. It is of the same dimensions as the hall at Nasik, and the treatment of its pillars is similar to that on some of the viharas there, while the groining also is not wood but rockcut, the style of the whole indicating the first century A.D. as the probable date of its execution. The interior measures only 45 feet in length, but the five pillars on each side of the aisles are carved in the same manner and almost as elaborately as the much larger examples at Karli. Instead however of the elephant and rider motif of the latter, the capitals support animals only, such as pairs of tigers, elephants, and sphinx. The admirable proportions of this hall and the richness of its decoration, although all compressed within a limited space, make it a typical example in miniature of Buddhist rock architecture.