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Mauryan art is art produced during the period of the Mauryan Empire, the first empire to rule over most of the Indian subcontinent, between 322 and 185 BCE. It represented an important transition in Indian art from the use of wood to stone. It was a royal art patronized by Mauryan kings, most notably Ashoka. Pillars, stupas and caves are its ...
Sudama and Lomas Rishi are the earliest examples of rock-cut architecture in India, [4] with architectural detailing made in the Mauryan period. Similar examples include the larger Buddhist Chaitya, found in Maharashtra, such as in Ajanta and Karla Caves. The Barabar caves greatly influenced the tradition of rock-cut architecture in the Indian ...
The designs used in the Pataliputra capital are echoed by other known examples of Maurya architecture, especially the pillars of Ashoka. Many of these design elements can also be found in the decoration of the animal capitals of the Pillars of Ashoka, such as the palmettes or rosette designs.
Such examples can also be seen in the remains of the Mauryan capital city of Pataliputra. It has also been suggested that 6th century Greek columns such as the Sphinx of Naxos, a 12.5m Ionic column crowned by an animal in the religious centre of Delphi, may have been an inspiration for the pillars of Ashoka. [27]
The Barabar caves are the first known and dated example of Mauryan polish, dedicated by Ashoka in several inscriptions, in the year 12 and the year 19 of his reign. The caves were carved from granite, an extremely hard rock, and finished with a very fine polishing of the inner surface, giving a mirror effect of great flatness, as well as an echo effect.
The Pataliputra capital, a Hellenistic anta capital found in the Mauryan Empire palace of Pataliputra, India, dated to the 3rd century BCE. 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.
During the reign of Mauryan emperor Ashoka, Lomas Rishi Cave was excavated and gifted to the Ajivikas monks. It is dated to the 3rd century BC. [12] Additional caves followed in the same granite hills, all in the 3rd century BC, based on the inscriptions found in the caves.
The most widespread examples of Mauryan architecture are the Ashoka pillars and carved edicts of Ashoka, often exquisitely decorated, with more than 40 spread throughout the Indian subcontinent. [150] [better source needed] The peacock was a dynastic symbol of Mauryans, as depicted by Ashoka's pillars at Nandangarh and Sanchi Stupa. [32]