[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Studies](https://indike.org/pramana/ins) › [Architecture and art](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art) › [A History of Fine Art in India and Ceylon, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911) › c8.2 # A History of Fine Art in India and Ceylon, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day c8.2 A History of Fine Art in India and Ceylon, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day c8.2 - **Language:** English ### [c8.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c8.2) THE imperial palace at Pātaliputra, the modern Patna, the capital of Chandragupta Maurya, the first emperor of India at the close of the fourth century before the Christian era, is described by Greek and Roman authors as excelling in splendour the royal residences of Susa and Ekbatana. Although no vestige of such a building, except, perhaps, some brick foundations, has survived, there is no reason to doubt the statements of the historians. Abundant evidence establishes the fact that Indian architects before the time of Asoka built their superstructures chiefly of timber, using brick almost exclusively for foundations and plinths. No deficiency in dignity or grandeur was involved by the use of the more perishable material; on the contrary, the employment of timber enables wide spaces to be roofed with ease which could not be spanned by masonry, especially when, as in India, the radiating arch was not ordinarily employed for structural purposes.¹ - [Previous: c7.s1.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c7.s1.1) - [Next: c8.3](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c8.3) - [Up: c8](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c8) --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c8.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.art.smith-1911.c8.2) · Pramāṇa