Ancient Art: Caves, Stupas and Schools

17 sites: rock-cut caves from Barabar to Ellora, the great stupas and the sculpture schools, with UPSC years.

On this map (17)

Barabar and Nagarjuni hills — Gaya · Bihar — Oldest rock-cut caves · Mauryan. Lomas Rishi cave has a mimicked wooden-arch doorway
Udayagiri–Khandagiri — Bhubaneswar · Odisha — Jain rock-cut caves · Kharavela. Rani Gumpha is the best-carved cave; carved during Kharavela’s time (1st century BC)
Bhaja caves — Pune · Maharashtra — Hinayana caves · 2nd century BC. A chaitya griha with a barrel roof, still carrying wooden ribs
Karle caves — Pune · Maharashtra — Largest chaitya hall. Hinayana chaitya hall near Lonavala, with a rock-cut stupa at the far end
Kanheri caves — Mumbai · Maharashtra — Buddhist caves. Ran from the 1st century BC into the 10th century AD
Nashik — Pandavleni caves · Maharashtra — Buddhist caves · Satavahana. Nashik prashasti of Gautamiputra Satakarni is in cave 3
Ajanta caves — Aurangabad · Maharashtra — Buddhist murals · 29 caves. Paintings by tempera on dry plaster; Buddha’s previous lives (Jatakas)
Ellora caves — Aurangabad · Maharashtra — Buddhist + Hindu + Jain · 34 caves. Kailasa temple (Cave 16) was cut from top to bottom under the Rashtrakuta king Krishna I
Elephanta caves — Gharapuri, Mumbai · Maharashtra — Shaiva cave temple. Island in Mumbai harbour, originally called Gharapuri
Sanchi — Raisen · Madhya Pradesh — Great Stupa · Ashoka. Ashoka’s brick stupa was enlarged with stone by the Sungas
Bharhut — Satna · Madhya Pradesh — Stupa · Sunga. Reliefs carry labels naming the scenes; the Buddha is shown by symbols
Amaravati — Guntur · Andhra Pradesh — Stupa · Satavahana. Later phase shows the Buddha in human form
Nagarjunakonda — Krishna valley · Andhra Pradesh — Stupas · Ikshvaku. Remains now stand on an island museum, after the dam
Sarnath — Varanasi · Uttar Pradesh — Dhamek stupa · Mauryan lion capital. Sarnath school of sculpture in the Gupta age: seated Buddha teaching
Mathura — school of sculpture · Uttar Pradesh — Kushana and Gupta · red sandstone. Statues of Buddha, Jain tirthankaras and Hindu gods; Kanishka statue is headless
Gandhara school — Taxila and Peshawar · Pakistan — Kushana · Greco-Roman influence. Also called the Greco-Roman or Indo-Greek school
Bagh caves — Dhar · Madhya Pradesh — Buddhist murals · Gupta age. Nine Buddhist caves on the Bagh river in western Malwa

Asked in exams

UPSC 2023Bhaja is well known for a Buddhist cave shrine
UPSC 2010Only two known Gupta cave paintings: Ajanta and Bagh caves
UPSC 2017Bodhisattva Padmapani painting → Ajanta
UPSC 2021Ajanta caves lie in the gorge of the Waghora river
UPSC 2010The other surviving Gupta-period cave painting site besides Ajanta → Bagh caves

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