Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c31.41

c31.41

A building art of such a virile character as that which flourished under the Solanki rule, did not however confine itself solely to the production of temples, and there are many other structures of a semi-religious or civic character executed at different places during this period. Among these are such erections as *kīrti-stambhas* or temple archways, monumental towers, city gateways, tanks and sluices, and *wāvs* or public wells. The *kīrti-stambha* is a form of torana, usually an accompaniment to the temple design, standing at its outer entrance, but there were some for the ceremonial of swinging the god (*lindola*), from others the scales were suspended for weighing the ruler against gold for charity, and for various similar observances. Two of the finest examples are at Vadnagar in Gujarat, both one time connected with a temple, but of which building not a vestige now remains. That which must have stood at the main entrance of the edifice at Rewah is the most complete and is a typical specimen of its kind. Of a total height of forty feet it consists of two massive and elaborated columns supporting a wide cornice, above which rises a voluted pediment containing figures. The pillars are designed with an upper story or attic, between which is thrown an ornamental cusped arch, making the effect of an archway more apparent. All the parts forming the *kīrti-stambha* are devised on the same principles as those employed in the temple design, with the spreading base, figured shaft, bracket capitals, and tabernacled superstructure being of much the same order, but, if anything, even more ornate. There is a sense of stability in their expanding pedestals, and grace in their proportions, but as examples of "riches spawned of riches," their heaped-up sculptured effect is overwhelming (Plate CI, Fig. 2).