Ajanta: The Colour and Monochrome Reproductions of the Ajanta Frescoes Based on Photography v2.c8.s18.3

v2.c8.s18.3

To describe the composition. We notice a group of five ladies in the middle. Their scanty dress, tight *cholīs* of a diaphanous material, and short *sārīs*, contrasted with their rich head-dresses and elaborate coiffures, give a most pleasing effect. The painter seems to have followed the actual styles, for such garments and such decoration of the hair are still in fashion among certain classes in the Deccan. The coiffure of the lady at the extreme left end is the most elaborate of all, and the tresses seem to be intertwined with strings of flowers, the whole falling in a rich mass on the shoulders and making a beautiful pattern. The figure of this lady is slim, and the fingers and toes are charmingly drawn, but the delineation of the arms and the legs is not pleasing, and there can be no comparison whatever between this figure and that of any of the nymphs of Botticelli in the *Primavera*.