Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c41.9

c41.9

Such was the system by which these great sacred piles were inaugurated and created, some of which were of phenomenal size, while there were many others not by any means of insignificant dimensions Of those erected in the vicinity of Anuradhapura shortly before and after the Christian era the following are the largest and most notable , Ruwanwaeli, second century B C, diameter 254 feet , Thuparama, third century B C, diameter 165 feet ; Abhayagiriya, 300 A D , diameter 327 feet, and the Jetawanarama, 4th century, diameter 325 feet As only one of the Indian stupas is more than 150 feet in diameter, namely the Amaravati, which is 162 feet, it will be realized that immense solid content was one of the aims of the Sinhalese dagaba builders Various efforts have been made in an attempt to calculate the cubic volume of the largest of these Ceylon monuments, as for instance the Abhyagiriya, which, when perfect, must have been 270 feet in height. One authority has² stated that the quantity of bricks used in this structure would be sufficient to build a moderately large-sized town, while another³ has estimated that the mass is equal in general dimensions to the Menkaura or Third Pyramid at Gizeh. Computations of this order do not lay claim to any degree of exactitude but they may give some idea of the stupendous size of the Ceylon dagabas, which in their later and dismantled condition, overgrown with vegetation, have more the appearance of a natural feature in the forest landscape than the handiwork of man. And it is not improbable that some such instinctive ideal party inspired the creation of these immense tumuli, The image provided is upside down (inverted 180 degrees). Let's orient the text correctly: