IAS Ultimate Learning Experience (P) LTD ART AND GS TSP 2014 DIRECTION STUDENTS ONLY CULTURE INSTITUTE FOR IAS EXAM. Post Maurya Art Indus Art The Indus civilization or the Harappan Sunga civilization, which flourished during the Bronze · Period of Chaityas, Viharas, Stupa Age i.e. 2500-2000 BC is ranked among the four · Chaitya hall (Prayer hall) with ventilated widely known civilizations of the old world. windows Extensive excavation work that has been done · Chaitya hall at Bhaja – Sunga period since Independence has so far identified more than · Chaitya hall at Karle – Andra period 100 sites belonging to this civilization. A few · Stupas hemispheric dome with Buddha’s prominent among them are Dholavira (Gujarat), relic inside Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Lothal (Gujarat), · Famous stupas – Bharhut, Sanchi, Sarkotada (Gujarat), Diamabad (Maharashtra), Amravati Alamgirpur (U.P.), Bhagwanpura (Haryana), · Railings decorated with figures of animals Banawali (Haryana), Kuntasi, Padri (Gujarat) and and Yaksha and Yakshi Mauda (Jammu). · Sanchi stupa is most decorated Maurya Art : The Mauryan architecture was Three schools of art embalmed in timber.The art of polishing of wood Amravati - Use of marble reached so much perfection during the Mauryan - Amravatiand period that master craftsmen used to make wood Nagayinkonda glisten like a mirror. (First Imperial art) - Detailed ornamentation Court art / Popular art Mathura - Use of red buff (Sikri) · Wooded architectural aspects by Ashoka sandstone · Art of polishing in pillars – Lauriya - First to build life like Nandagarh Pillar image of Buddha · Pillars made of Chunar sandstone - Developed during · Capitals mainly consists of Bull, Lion Kushans elephants - Standing figure · Sarnath Lion Capital (National Emblem) of Kanishka and · Sanchi Lion Capital Buddha are famous. · Influence of Archaemenian and Gandhara - Influence of Indo Greek Hellenistic art art · Chief centres – Taxila, Sarnath 1 IAS Ultimate Learning Experience (P) LTD ART AND GS TSP 2014 DIRECTION STUDENTS ONLY CULTURE INSTITUTE FOR IAS EXAM. - Buddha shown as Roman peacocks and a deer) have been approved and Greek Gods by him. - Sculptures related to (ii) 2nd Major Rock Edict: Buddha’s life – Birth to (a) The land of Cholas, Pandyas, Satyaputras and Death and Buddistava. Keralaputra along with Ceylon is mentioned. - Stupas in Guldara, (b) Two medical services, one for human beings Loriyan Tangai (Swat and other for animals, were provided by the valley) state. - Minimum ornaments and (c) Emphasis on plantation of trees and digging use of schist marble and at road for wells have been recorded. grey sandstone (iii) 3rd Major Rock Edict: Asokan inscriptions have been divided into: (a) It mentioned about his order to yuktas, rajukas (a) Major Rock Edicts: 14 Edicts and two and pradesikas about their traveling across separate Edicts at Kalinga. the empire at every five years interval. (b) Minor rock Edicts: Can be divided into (b) Cordial relationship between son and parent, two subgroups. friends and relatives and generosity toward (i) The first group includes Minor Rock Brahmins and shramanas has been Edicts, Queen’s Edict, Barbar Cave emphasized. Inscription and Kandahar Bilingual (c) Prohibition of killing and spending. Inscription. (iv) 4th Major Rock Edict: His firm (ii) The second group is entirely concerned convictions of dhamma and harmonious with the Buddhist community and social relationships have been claimed. includes Bhabra Insription, the (v) 5th Major Rock Edict: Emphasis of good Rummindei Pillar Inscription, Nigalisagar doing by him and his family; appointment Pillar Inscription and Schiem Edict. of office of Dhamma; welfare of people (c) The Pillar Edicts are seven in number. including Greeks, Kambojas, Gandharas, Major Rock Edicts Risthikas, Pitinikas, welfare of prisoners, (i) 1st Major Rock Edict: prohibited animal nobles, old, poor and servants, and thus sacrifice, especially during festive spread of dhamma have been claimed and gatherings, but at the same time killing of emphasized. three animals in royal kitchen (i.e. two (vi) 6th Major Rock Edict: 2 IAS Ultimate Learning Experience (P) LTD ART AND GS TSP 2014 DIRECTION STUDENTS ONLY CULTURE INSTITUTE FOR IAS EXAM. (a) Emphasizes on efficient administrative order. (a) Speaks of the similar attitude of Asoka (b) Contains famous instruction: “At all times, towards different sects. whether I am eating, or am in the women’s (b) Contains the famous statement: “Whosoever aprartments or in my inner apartments, or at honours his own sect or disparages that of the cattle-shed, or in my carriage, or in my another man, wholly out of devotion to his gardens – where ever I may be, my informants own, with a view to showing it in a favourabled should keep me in touch with public business”. light, harms his own sect even more seriously”. (c) Also contains another famous instruction “And (xiii) 13th Major Rock Edict: whatever I may order by word of mouth, (a) Tells about conquest of Kalinga where “a whether it concerns a donation or a hundred and fifty thousand people were proclamation, or whatever urgent matter is deported, a hundred thousand were killed” entrusted to my officers, if there is any dispute and therefore Ashoka felt remorse and felt or deliberation in the council, it is to be that conquest by dhamma was the foremost reported to me immediately, at all places, at victory. all times”. (b) Was the longest Asokan edict. (vii) 7th Major Rock Edict: Co-ordination, self (xiv) 14th Major Rock Edict: Speaks about the control and purity of mind among all sects texture of other edicts. has been urged. Few Important Informations about Edicts: th (viii) 8th Major Rock Edict: Talks about (i) The 6 Major edict contains the famous Dhammayatras. claim of Asoka, “All men are my children”. (ix) 9th Major Rock Edict: Instruction against (ii) Longest pillar edict “The Bhabra Edict”. trivial and useless ceremonies and (iii) Seven major pillar edicts – Appendix to emphasis on ceremony of dhamma. rock edicts. th (x) 10 Major Rock Edict: (iv) Four Minor pillar edicts: Sign’s of (a) Desirability of Asoka not for worldly fame Ashoka’s feneticism to ‘Dhamma’. and glory but the glory in sphere of dhamma. (v) The minor rock edict of Yerragudi is (b) Criticism of evil inclination. written in “boustrophedon style”. (xi) 11th Major Rock Edict: Glorification of (vi) Nigalisagar Inscription confirms the the gift of dhamma, the praise of dhamma, existence of Buddha Konakamma. (vii) Bhabra rock edict informs us about sharing and fellowship of dhamma. Asoka’s conversion to Buddhism. (xii) 12th Major Rock Edict: 3 IAS Ultimate Learning Experience (P) LTD ART AND GS TSP 2014 DIRECTION STUDENTS ONLY CULTURE INSTITUTE FOR IAS EXAM. (viii) Asokan pillar of Nandangarh bears the that are generally ascribed to the Mauryan phase. figure of a peacock, pointing to the They are: association (i) A railing(?) pillar from Arjunapura, of Mauryan kings with it. Mathura. (ix) Barabar cave inscription talks about (ii) The oldest part of Stupas. grant of Banyan cave to Ajivkas by (iii) Foundations of Chaitya halls at Sanchi Asoka. and Sonari. (x) Kandhar Rock inscription exists in (iv) Two Yaksha statues from Patna. bilingual form, one in Greek and another (v) Few sculptures in red spotted sand-stone in Aramaic version. from Mathura. Stage-I Mauryan Art (c. 300 to 100 B.C.) (vi) Few sculptures of grey polished stones The sum total of the Mauryan treasury of from Sarnath. art may be said to include: (vii) A ribbed polished stone-umbrella from (i) The remains of the royal palace and city Sanchi. of Patliputra. (viii) A chauri-bearing Yaksha statue from (ii) A monolithic rail at Sarnath. Didarganj. (iii) The Bodhimanda or the altar resting on (ix) A more than life size Yaksha from four pilasters at Bodhgaya. Parkham. (iv) The excavated Chaitya-halls or cave- (x) A hooded serpent canopy from Rajgir. dwellings in the Barabar and Nagarjuni (xi) Terracottas from Sarnath, Basarh, hills of Gaya including the Sudama cave Bulandibagh, Kumrahar etc. dated in 12th year of Asoka’s regin. All these works of Mauryan period have been (v) The non-edict and edict bearing pillars. divided into two general categories: (i) Court Art, (vi) The animal sculptures crowning the and (ii) Folk Art. pillars with animal and regal reliefs (i) Court Art is represented by pillars and their decorating the abaci of the capitals. capitals. (vii) The front half of the representation of an (a) highly polished, tall and well proportioned elephant carved out in the round form at columns with slightly tapering monolithic Dhauli in Orissa. shafts standing free in space by themselves Along with these famous Mauryan art-works, there are the best specimen of Mauryan court art. are still other architectural and sculptural remains There are two types of such columns: (a) edict 4 IAS Ultimate Learning Experience (P) LTD ART AND GS TSP 2014 DIRECTION STUDENTS ONLY CULTURE INSTITUTE FOR IAS EXAM. bearing columns and (b) columns without any in the case of Basarh-Bakhira pillar which edicts. Columns of Delhi, Meerut, Allahabad, is heavy and massive, seem to have maintained Lauriya-Araraj, Lauriya-Nandangarh, a graceful and elegant proportion throughout. Rampurva (with lion capital), Delhi-Topra, (ii) Folk Art/Popular Art consisted of those Sankissa, Sanchi and Sarnath represent the art-works which were probably not commissioned former category, while Rampurva (with bull- by the emperor; the patrons were obviously local capital), Basarh-Bakhira (with single lion governors or well to do citizens. Yakshi of capital) and Kosam (capital yet to be recovered) Besnagar, the Yaksha of Parkham, the Chauri- come into latter category. We have yet another bearer from Didarganj and numerous terracotta category which had dedicatory inscriptions such figurines belong to this group. as those of Rummindei and Nigalisagar. During this period, the first major works (b) All the Mauryan columns, no matter where of architecture and stone-carving were made.