History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c29.s2.t5.1

v1.c29.s2.t5.1

Wood and the vegetable world supplied the first building materials and wood was amongst the first constructional material for buildings. Post holes supporting wooden posts or bamboos have been identified from prehistoric settlements right from neolithic times. Sanskrit (*Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa*) and Pali literature (*Jātakas*) *Arthaśāstra* and *Rāmāyaṇa* show that buildings were generally made of wood. That wooden architecture prevailed in India for a long time is attested by the fact that when other material was used the buildings were made after their wooden models. The pillars, the arch, the door and the mouldings of the early caves all disclose their indebtedness to buildings made of wood. From the use of bamboos came the