The Ancient and Medieval Architecture of India: A Study of Indo-Aryan Civilisation c17.21

c17.21

It is unnecessary to go again over the ground covered by the preceding chapters, so we will begin by comparing the finest of the monastic halls, Nos. I and II, in the third group (Pl. XLI—XLIII) with the Gautamîputra monastery at Nâsik (Pl. XXII), in order to show the development of the Indo-Aryan architectural tradition in the Gupta period. The plan of the Ajantâ hall, fig. 50, is practically the same as the one at Nâsik, only, instead of a simple stûpa symbol on the walls of the cells, a great image of the Buddha as the Teacher is sculptured within a cubical cell on the side facing the entrance. The verandah front (Pl. XLI) is supported by six massive columns, as at Nâsik, but an entrance porch had been added in the middle of it. This unfortunately has completely fallen away.