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Mauryan Polish
Mauryan polish describes one of the frequent characteristics of architecture and sculptures of the Maurya Empire in India (325 to 185 BCE), which gives a very smooth and shiny surface to the stone material, generally of sandstone or granite.The roots of Indian Art, Gupta, p .88 Mauryan polish is found especially in the Ashoka Pillars as well as in some constructions like the Barabar Caves. The technique did not end with the empire, but continued to be "used on occasion up to the first or second century A.D.", although the presence of the polish sometimes complicates dating, as with the Didarganj Yakshi. According to the archaeologist John Marshall: the "extraordinary precision and accuracy which characterizes all Mauryan works, and which has never, we venture to say, been surpassed even by the finest workmanship on Athenian buildings". Polished Barabar Caves The Barabar caves are the first known and dated example of Mauryan polish, since they were dedicated by Ashoka in severa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarnath Capital
The Sarnath capital is a pillar capital, sometimes also described as a "stone bracket", discovered in the archaeological excavations at the ancient Buddhist site of Sarnath in 1905. The pillar displays Ionic volutes and palmettes. It used to be dated to the 3rd century BCE, during the Mauryan Empire period, but is now dated to the 1st century BCE, during the Sunga Empire period. One of the faces shows a galloping horse carrying a rider, while the other face shows an elephant and its mahaut. The capital is suggestive of the Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ... Ionic order, and is often discussed in conjunction with the Pataliputra capital. The two capitals have also been described as "quasi-Ionic", and compared for example to the anta capitals of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dasaratha Maurya
Dasharatha Maurya () was the 4th Mauryan emperor from 232 to 224 BCE. He was a grandson of Ashoka The Great and is commonly held to have succeeded him as the imperial ruler of India. Dasharatha presided over a declining imperium and several territories of the empire broke away from central rule during his reign. He had continued the religious and social policies of Ashoka. Dasharatha was the last ruler of the Mauryan dynasty to have issued imperial inscriptions—thus the last Mauryan Emperor to be known from epigraphical sources. Dasharatha died in 224 BCE and was succeeded by his cousin Samprati. Background Dasharatha was a grandson of the Mauryan ruler Ashoka.Asha Vishnu; ''Material Life of Northern India: Based on an Archaeological Study, 3rd Century B.C. to 1st Century B.C. Mittal Publications''. 1993. . pg 3. He is commonly held to have succeeded his grandfather as imperial ruler in India although some sources including the Vayu Purana have given different names and nu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rosette (design)
A rosette is a round, stylized flower design. Origin The rosette derives from the natural shape of the botanical rosette, formed by leaves radiating out from the stem of a plant and visible even after the flowers have withered. History The rosette design is used extensively in sculptural objects from antiquity, appearing in Mesopotamia, and in funeral steles' decoration in Ancient Greece. The rosette was another important symbol of Ishtar which had originally belonged to Inanna along with the Star of Ishtar. It was adopted later in Romaneseque and Renaissance architecture, and also common in the art of Central Asia, spreading as far as India where it is used as a decorative motif in Greco-Buddhist art. Ancient origins One of the earliest appearances of the rosette in ancient art is in early fourth millennium BC Egypt. Another early Mediterranean occurrence of the rosette design derives from Minoan Crete; Among other places, the design appears on the Phaistos Disc, re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palmette
The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art of most of Eurasia, often in forms that bear relatively little resemblance to the original. In ancient Greek and Roman uses it is also known as the anthemion (from the Greek ανθέμιον, a flower). It is found in most artistic media, but especially as an architectural ornament, whether carved or painted, and painted on ceramics. It is very often a component of the design of a frieze or border. The complex evolution of the palmette was first traced by Alois Riegl in his '' Stilfragen'' of 1893. The half-palmette, bisected vertically, is also a very common motif, found in many mutated and vestigial forms, and especially important in the development of plant-based scroll ornament. Description The essence of the palmette is a symmetri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Honeysuckles
Honeysuckles are arching shrubs or twining vines in the genus ''Lonicera'' () of the family Caprifoliaceae, native to northern latitudes in North America and Eurasia. Approximately 180 species of honeysuckle have been identified in both continents. Widely known species include ''Lonicera periclymenum'' (common honeysuckle or woodbine), ''Lonicera japonica'' (Japanese honeysuckle, white honeysuckle, or Chinese honeysuckle) and ''Lonicera sempervirens'' (coral honeysuckle, trumpet honeysuckle, or woodbine honeysuckle). ''L. japonica'' is an aggressive, highly invasive species considered a significant pest on the continents of North America, Europe, South America, Australia, and Africa. Some species are highly fragrant and colorful, so are cultivated as ornamental garden plants. In North America, hummingbirds are attracted to the flowers, especially ''L. sempervirens'' and ''L. ciliosa'' (orange honeysuckle). Honeysuckle derives its name from the edible sweet nectar obtainable f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sankassa
Sankissa (also Sankasia, Sankassa and Sankasya) was an ancient city in India. The city came into prominence at the time of Gautama Buddha. According to a Buddhist source, it was thirty leagues from Savatthi.''Dhammapadatthakathā'', iii, 224 After the Gautama Buddha's Mahaparinirvana (passing away) king Ashoka developed this place and installed one of his famous Pillars of Ashoka in the city, from which the elephant capital survives. He also built a stupa and a temple commemorating the visit of the Buddha. This temple exists even today and the ruins of the stupa are also present as a temple of Vishari Devi. It is said that the name Visahari Devi is given to the mother of the Buddha. Currently it has ruins of old monasteries and Buddhist monuments. It is rarely visited by pilgrims since it is difficult to go to, and there are not many facilities. After a long time Alexander Cunningham (British) discovered the place in 1842. Eighty-seven years later Sir Anagarika Dharmapala (Sri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hellenistic Influence On Indian Art
Hellenistic influence on Indian art and architecture reflects the artistic and architectural influence of the Greeks on Indian art following the conquests of Alexander the Great, from the end of the 4th century BCE to the first centuries of the common era. The Greeks in effect maintained a political presence at the doorstep, and sometimes within India, down to the 1st century CE with the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and the Indo-Greek Kingdoms, with many noticeable influences on the arts of the Maurya Empire (c.321–185 BCE) especially. Hellenistic influence on Indian art was also felt for several more centuries during the period of Greco-Buddhist art. Historical context Pre-Hellenistic influences (518–327 BCE) Coin finds in the Kabul hoard in Kabul or the Shaikhan Dehri hoard in Pushkalavati have revealed numerous Achaemenid coins as well as many Greek coins from the 5th and 4th centuries BCE were circulating in the area, at least as far as the Indus during the rule of the Achae ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rampurva
The Rampurva capitals are the capitals of a pair of Ashoka Pillars discovered in by A. C. L. Carlleyle. The archaeological site is called Rampurva, and is located in the West Champaran district of the Indian state of Bihar, situated very close to the border with Nepal. The lion capital is now in the Indian Museum in Kolkota, while the bull capital is located at the center of the porch of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Indian Presidential Palace. Buddhist significance Waddell in 1896 suggested that the death or parinirvana of Gautama Buddha was in the region of Rampurva: "I believe that Kusīnagara, where the Buddha died may be ultimately found to the North of Bettiah, and in the line of the Açōka pillars which lead hither from Patna (Pāțaliputra)." Modern scholarship, based on archaeological evidence, believes that the Buddha died in Kushinagar (Uttar Pradesh). Rampurava lion capital The lion pillar is inscribed with the Major Pillar Edicts of the Edicts of Ashoka, Pillar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sankissa
Sankissa (also Sankasia, Sankassa and Sankasya) was an ancient city in India. The city came into prominence at the time of Gautama Buddha. According to a Buddhist source, it was thirty leagues from Savatthi.''Dhammapadatthakathā'', iii, 224 After the Gautama Buddha's Mahaparinirvana (passing away) king Ashoka developed this place and installed one of his famous Pillars of Ashoka in the city, from which the elephant capital survives. He also built a stupa and a temple commemorating the visit of the Buddha. This temple exists even today and the ruins of the stupa are also present as a temple of Vishari Devi. It is said that the name Visahari Devi is given to the mother of the Buddha. Currently it has ruins of old monasteries and Buddhist monuments. It is rarely visited by pilgrims since it is difficult to go to, and there are not many facilities. After a long time Alexander Cunningham (British) discovered the place in 1842. Eighty-seven years later Sir Anagarika Dharmapala (Sri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanchi
Sanchi is a Buddhist complex, famous for its Great Stupa, on a hilltop at Sanchi Town in Raisen District of the State of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located, about 23 kilometres from Raisen town, district headquarter and north-east of Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh. The Great Stupa at Sanchi is one of the oldest stone structures in India, and an important monument of Indian Architecture. It was originally commissioned by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. Its nucleus was a simple hemispherical brick structure built over the relics of the Buddha. It was crowned by the '''chhatra, a parasol-like structure symbolising high rank, which was intended to honour and shelter the relics. The original construction work of this stupa was overseen by Ashoka, whose wife Devi was the daughter of a merchant of nearby Vidisha. Sanchi was also her birthplace as well as the venue of her and Ashoka's wedding. In the 1st century BCE, four elaborately carved toranas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ashoka Lauriya Areraj Inscription
Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, stretching from present-day Afghanistan in the west to present-day Bangladesh in the east, with its capital at Pataliputra. A patron of Buddhism, he is credited with playing an important role in the spread of Buddhism across ancient Asia. Much of the information about Ashoka comes from his Brahmi edicts, which are among the earliest long inscriptions of ancient India, and the Buddhist legends written centuries after his death. Ashoka was son of Bindusara, and a grandson of the dynasty's founder Chandragupta. During his father's reign, he served as the governor of Ujjain in central India. According to some Buddhist legends, he also suppressed a revolt in Takshashila as a prince, and after his father's death, killed his brothers to ascend t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Son Bhandar Caves
The Son Bhandar Caves (also known as the Swarn Bhandar Caves) are two man-made caves carved into the base of the Vaibhar Hills in Rajgir in the state of Bihar in India. Based on the dedicatory inscription found in the largest cave — which uses Gupta script of the 4th century CE — the caves are generally dated to the 3rd or 4th century CE, although some authors have suggested the caves could actually go back to the period of the Maurya Empire, possibly as early as 319 BCE. The main cave is rectangular with a trapezoidal entrance and a vaulted ceiling, reminiscent of the structure of the earlier Barabar Caves. The quality of the polish and the finish are nevertheless much inferior to that of the Barabar Caves. The stone of Son Bhandar is also much less hard than the granite of the Barabar caves, and therefore did not require the same degree of effort and technique.Gupta, The roots of Indian Art, B. R. Publishing Corporation, Delhi, 1980 Dedicatory inscription of the 4th cent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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