Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c23.19

c23.19

As in all rock architecture of a similar type, the pillars, especially those of the facade, are the principal elements in the composition, and those of the Mamalla group are no exception. The beginning of the Pallava order of the column has already been referred to in the works of the previous reign, but the Mamallapuram mandapas show this feature in its rich maturity. In some of the examples the crude block bracket is still much in evidence, primitive traditions usually die hard, but on the other hand some of the pillars as for instance those on the exterior of the Mahishasura mandapa are singularly graceful conceptions, when the purpose and peculiar technique are taken into consideration. A further development, with the addition of the heraldic lion forming the lower half of the shaft, is seen in the facade pillars of the Varaha mandapa, one of the most finished examples in the entire group. But the culmination of this lion form of pillar is represented by the two interior columns of the former mandapa, so different from any of the others, yet refining