Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c12.s17.2

c12.s17.2

The almost colossal animal sculptures that crown the Mauryan columns along with the elephant of Dhauli in Orissa may conveniently be studied separately. Here too as in the case of the column itself a rough chronological sequence of the stages of striving after the desired effect can well be traced. The Basarh-Bakhira lion evidently marks one of the earliest stages; the next definite stage is reached at Dhauli where the elephant but half emerges from live rock and which is datable as we know in the twelfth or thirteenth year of Aśoka's reign; to this stage must also be ascribed the elephant of Sankissa. The Rampurva bull marks the next stage in the ascending scale closely followed by the Lauriya-Nandangarh lion; while the Rampurva lion leads us to the final stage represented by the quadripartite semi-lions of Sārnāth and Sāñchī—an unmistakable evidence of clever accumulation that always comes at a later stage of the evolution of form.