Ancient History of the Deccan c3.s4.9

c3.s4.9

We may often estimate the greatness of empires by the beauty of their monuments. It is therefore probable that the reign of Nahapâna was very glorious, as some of the monuments constructed during his reign are among the most splendid in India. One of these is the Buddhist temple cut in the rock at Kârlî, the immense nave of which equals in grandeur that of the Gothic churches. It is noteworthy that the monuments containing the inscriptions of Nahapâna (at Junnar, Kârlî, Nâsik) are all in the same style. This style resembles much that of the balustrade of the grand stûpa at Sâñchi. We have already said that this balustrade was probably begun between 70 B. C. and 60 B. C. It must certainly have taken a sufficiently long time to build, for, the style of the sculptures shows that the gateways may be arranged chronologically in the folowing order: (1) Southern, (2) Northern, (3) Eastern (4) Western, (Archæological Survey of India; Report for 1913-14, page 9.) It is therefore probable that most of the sculptures of Sâñchi date from 50. B. C. to 1. A. D. and that the monuments containing the inscriptions of Nahapâna have been sculptured shortly before the beginning of our era.