The Beginnings of Buddhist Art and Other Essays in Indian and Central-Asian Archaeology c7.s1.4

c7.s1.4

The sculptures which cover from top to bottom the eastern gate of the *stûpa* of Sânchî may be divided into two great categories, the decorative elements and the Buddhist scenes. In reality the line of demarcation between these two orders of subjects is at times very difficult to trace. Many of the so-called ornaments have a traditional symbolical value, and, on the other hand, a great number of the edifying representations tend to pure decoration. The distinction is justified, however, in practice. We shall avoid many useless repetitions, if we decide to classify in the first category all those motifs whose character, being before all ornamental, is sufficiently emphasized by the fact that they are symmetrically repeated on the beams or the uprights of the stone scaffolding which constitutes the torana (cf. above, pp. 65-6).