Prehistoric Rock Paintings

Prehistoric Art

• Prehistory: Time period in the past when there was no paper or the written word and hence no books or written accounts of events. Information about such an age is obtained from excavations which reveal paintings, pottery, habitat, etc.
• Drawings and paintings were the oldest form of artistic expression practiced by humans. Reasons for such drawings: Either to decorate their homes, or/and to keep a journal of events in their lives.
• Lower and middle Palaeolithic Periods have not shown any evidence of art works so far. The Upper Palaeolithic Age shows a lot of artistic activities.
• Earliest paintings in India are from the Upper Palaeolithic Age.
• The first discovery of rock paintings in the world was made in India by archaeologist Archibald Carlleyle in 1867 – 68 (in Sohagighat, Mirzapur District, Uttar Pradesh).
• Rock paintings have been found in the walls of caves at Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Karnataka, some in the Kumaon Hills of Uttarakhand.
• Paintings at the rock shelters at Lakhudiyar on the banks of the Suyal River (Uttarakhand) –
  --> 3 categories of paintings: man, animal and geometric patterns in black, white and red ochre.
  -->Humans in stick-like forms, a long snouted animal, a fox, a multiple-legged lizard, wavy lines, groups of dots and rectangle-filled geometric designs, hand-linked dancing humans.
• Paintings in Kupgallu (Telangana), Piklihal and Tekkalkota (both in Karnataka)
  --> Mostly in white and red ochre.
  --> Subjects are bulls, sambhars, elephants, sheep, gazelles, goats, horses, stylised humans and tridents.
• Paintings in the Vindhya ranges at Madhya Pradesh extending into Uttar Pradesh –
  --> About 500 rock shelters at Bhimbetka in the Vindhya Hills at Madhya Pradesh.
  --> Images of hunting, dancing, music, elephant and horse riders, honey collection, animal fighting, decoration of bodies, household scenes, etc.
  --> Bhimbetka drawings can be categorised into 7 Periods
                     Period I: Upper Palaeolithic
                     Period II: Mesolithic
                     Period III: Chalcolithic
• Two major sites of prehistoric rock/cave paintings in India: Bhimbetka Caves and Jogimara Caves (Amarnath, Madhya Pradesh).

Bhimbetka Paintings

• Continuous occupation of these caves from 100000 BC to 1000 AD.
• Discovered by archaeologist V S Wakankar in 1957 – 58.
• One of the oldest paintings in India and the world.
• Period I (Upper Palaeolithic)
  --> Linear representations of animals like bisons, tigers, elephants, rhinos and boars; stick-like human figures.
  --> Paintings in green and dark red. Green paintings are of dancers and red ones are of hunters.
• Period II (Mesolithic)
  --> Largest number of paintings in this period.
  --> More themes but paintings reduce in size.
  --> Mostly hunting scenes – people hunting in groups with barbed spears, arrows and bows, and pointed sticks. Also show traps and snares to catch animals.
  --> Hunters wear simple clothes; some men are shown with head dresses and masks. Women have been shown both clothed and in the nude.
  --> Animals seen – elephants, bisons, boars, tigers, deer, antelopes, leapards, panthers, rhinos, frogs, lizards, fish, squirrels and birds.
  --> Children are seen playing and jumping. Some scenes depict family life.
• Period III (Chalcolithic)
  --> Paintings indicate an association of these cave-dwellers with the agricultural communities settled at Malwa.
  --> Cross-hatched squares, lattices, pottery and metal tools are depicted.
  --> Colours used in Bhimbetka paintings – white, yellow, orange, red ochre, purple, brown, green and black. Most common colours – white and red.
  --> Red obtained from haematite (geru); green from chalcedony; white probably from limestone.
  --> Brushes were made from plant fibre.
  --> In some places, there are many layers of paintings, sometimes 20.
  --> Paintings can be seen in caves that were used as dwelling places and also in caves that had some other purpose, perhaps religious.
  --> The colours of the paintings have remained intact thousands of years perhaps due to the chemical reaction of the oxide present on the rock surface.

Indus Valley Civilization – Art & Culture

• Indus Valley art emerged during the second half of the third millennium BCE (i.e. from 2500 BC onwards).
• Forms of art: seals, pottery, sculpture, gold jewellery, terracotta figures, etc.
• The two major sites of this civilisation, Harappa and Mohenjodaro showcase excellent town planning as well, like houses, planned streets, public baths, drainage systems, storage facilities, etc.
• Harappa and Mohenjodaro are in Pakistan.
• Major sites in India are: Rakhigarhi (Haryana), Ropar (Punjab), Kalibangan and Balathal (Rajasthan), Lothal and Dholavira (Gujarat).

Stone statues

• Two male statues in stone – the Bearded Man (priest king) and a torso in red sandstone.
• Bearded man (Priest)
• Appears to be of a priest
  1. A shawl is draped over the left shoulder
  2. Slightly elongated eyes as if in half-meditation
  3. Well-formed nose, with a moustache, short beard and whiskers
  4. Wearing an armlet and probable other jewellery.

Bronze casting

• The bronze statues found in Harappa were made by the technique called Lost Wax technique.
• This technique is used in some parts of the country even today showing continuity of traditions.
• This technique was popular in almost all the sites.
• First, wax figures were made and then covered with clay. The clay as allowed to dry and then the figure was heated to melt the wax. This wax was drained out through a hole in the clay. After that, the hollow clay was filled with the metal of choice. After cooling the metal, the clay was removed revealing the desired metal figurine.
• Both animal and human figures were made this way.
• Examples of bronze figures: Dancing Girl, Buffalo with uplifted head.

Dancing Girl

• 4 inch copper figure
• Long hair tied in a bun
• Left arm covered with bangles
• Cowrie shell necklace around the neck
• Right hand on the hip and the left hand in a traditional Indian dancing gesture
• Large eyes and a flat nose
• Found from Mohenjodaro.

Terracotta

• Terracotta images were also created but they were less refined as compared to the stone statues.
• Most important terracotta images are those of the mother goddess.
• Male figures are also found with similar features and positioning in all the figures indicating perhaps the image of a god.
• Terracotta toys have also been found (wheels, whistles, rattles, gamesmen, discs, birds and animals).

Seals

• Thousands of seals have been discovered.
• They were mostly made of steatite (a kind of soft stone).
• Some seals were also made using chert, agate, copper, terracotta, faience, gold and ivory.
• Standard Harappan seals were square plaques with 2X2 dimension.
• Purpose of the seals: chiefly commercial.
• Some seals were carried in the form of amulets, perhaps as identity cards.
• Every seal has a picture of an animal and some writings in a pictographic script (which is not yet deciphered).
• Animals represented include tigers, bulls, elephants, goats, bisons, etc.
• Pashupati Seal: A seal with a figure seated cross-legged in the centre with animals around; an elephant and a tiger to the right of the figure and a rhino and a buffalo to its left.
• Copper tablets, square or rectangular in shape have been found which were used as amulets.

Pottery

• A lot of pottery has been excavated.
• Plain and painted pottery are found – plain is more common.
• Plain pottery: generally made of red clay, with or without a fine red or grey slip.
• Black painted pottery: has a fine coating of red slip with painted geometric and animal designs.
• Perforated pottery was also found, perhaps to use as a sieve.
• Pottery of various sizes has been excavated.

Beads and ornaments

• A variety of ornaments have been found which were used by both men and women.
• Made from precious metals, gemstones, bone and baked clay.
• Ornaments worn by men and women: fillets, necklaces, finger-rings, armlets.
• Ornaments worn by women: earrings, girdles, anklets.
• Well-crafted ornaments have been found including necklaces of gold and semi-precious stones, copper bracelets and beads, head ornaments and earrings made of gold, steatite and gemstone beads, faience pendants and buttons.
• Cemetery found in Farmana (Haryana) – where dead bodies were buried with ornaments.
• Bead factories at Lothal and Chanhudaro.
• Beads made from cornelian, amethyst, lapis lazuli, quartz, crystal, jasper, turquoise, steatite, etc. Metals were also used like gold, bronze and copper. Beads were also made from shells and terracotta.
• Beads were of various shapes disc-shaped, cylindrical, spherical, barrel-shaped, and segmented.

Lion Capital And Sanchi Stupa

Lion Capital, Sarnath

• One of the finest examples of Mauryan sculpture.
• Located at Sarnath, near Varanasi. Commissioned by Emperor Ashoka. Built-in 250 BCE.
• Made of polished sandstone. The surface is heavily polished.
• Currently, the pillar is in its original place but the capital is on display at the Sarnath Museum.
• It was commissioned to commemorate the first sermon of the Buddha or the Dharmachakrapravartana at Sarnath.
• Originally, the capital had five components:
  ---> The shaft (now broken into many parts)
  ---> A lotus base bell
  ---> A drum on the base bell with 4 animals proceeding clockwise (abacus)
  ---> Figures of 4 lions
  ---> The crowning part, a large wheel (this is also broken and displayed at the museum)
• The capital was adopted as the National Emblem of India after independence without the crowning wheel and the lotus base.
• The four lions are seated back-to-back on a circular abacus. The figures of the lions are grand and evoke magnificence. They are realistic images and the lions are portrayed as if they are holding their breath. The curly manes of the lions are voluminous. The muscles of the feet are shown stretched indicating the weight of the bodies.
• The abacus has four wheels (chakra) with 24 spokes in all four directions. This is part of the Indian National Flag now.
• The wheel represents Dharmachakra in Buddhism (the wheel of dhamma/dharma). Between every wheel, there are animals carved. They are a bull, a horse, an elephant and a lion. The animals appear as if they are in motion. The abacus is supported by the inverted lotus capital.

Sanchi Stupa

• Sanchi Stupa is a UNESCO world heritage site since 1989. Sanchi is in Madhya Pradesh.
• There are many small stupas here with three mains ones – stupa 1, stupa 2 and stupa 3. Stupa 1 is also called the Great Stupa at Sanchi. It is the most prominent and the oldest and is believed to have the Buddha’s relics.
• It was built by Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE.
• Originally, it was smaller than its present dimensions. It was expanded in later periods.
• The original structure was made out of bricks. Later on, it was covered with stone, vedica, and the torana (gateway).
• There are four gateways to the stupa with the southern one being built first. The others were later added. The gateways are adorned with beautiful sculptures and carvings. Each torana consists of two vertical pillars and three horizontal bars on top. The bars contain exquisite carvings on front and back. They contain images of shalbhanjikas – lady holding the branch of a tree. Stories from the Jataka tales are carved here.
• The structure has a lower and upper pradakshinapatha or circumambulatory path. The upper pradakshinapatha is unique to this stupa.
• On the southern side of the stupa, the Ashokan Lion Capital pillar is found with inscriptions on it.
• The hemispherical dome of the stupa is called the anda. It contains the relics of the Buddha.
• The harmika is a square railing on top of the dome/mound.
• The chhatra is an umbrella on top of the harmika. There is a sandstone pillar in the site on which Ashoka’s Schism Edict is inscribed.
• The original brick dome was expanded into double its size during the reign of the Shunga dynasty with stone slabs covering the original dome.

Temple Architecture In India

• The basic elements that comprise a Hindu Temple are given below:
• Garbhagriha: Literally means womb-house. It is a cave-like sanctum which houses the main icon of the temple. In earlier times, it was a small cubicle with one entrance. In later periods, it grew into a larger chamber.
• Mandapa: The entrance to the temple. It could be a portico or a collonaded hall where worshippers stand.
• Shikhara/Vimana: Noticed from the 5th century CE. It is a mountain-like spire on top. In north India, it is called Shikhara and is curving in shape. In the south, it is like a pyramidal tower and is called Vimana.
• Amalaka: Stone-like disc seen at the top of the temple. Mostly in north Indian temples.
• Kalasha: It is the topmost part of the temple. Mainly seen in north Indian styles.
• Antarala: It is a vestibule between the Garbhagriha and the Mandapa.
• Jagati: This is common in north Indian temples and is a raised platform where devotees can sit and pray.
• Vahana: It is the vehicle of the main deity which along with the standard pillar or Dhvaj which are placed axialy

Basically there are 3 kinds of temple architecture:

• Nagara Style
• Dravida Style
• Vesara Style

The Nagara or North Indian temple style

• Became popular in northern India.
• Entire temple is generally built on a stone platform with steps leading to it.
• No grand boundary walls or gateways (unlike the Dravida style).
• Earlier temples had one shikhara whereas latter temples had many.
• The garbhagriha is located directly beneath the tallest shikhara.

Dravida or South Indian Style

• The temple is enclosed within a compound wall.
• Gopuram: The entrance gateway in the centre of the front wall.
• Vimana: The shape of the main temple tower. It is a stepped pyramid that rises up geometrically (unlike the Nagara style Shikhara that is curving).
• In the Dravida style, shikhara is the word used for the crowning element at the top of the temple (which is shaped like a stupika or octagonal cupola).
• At the entrance to the garbhagriha, there would be sculptures of fierce dvarapalas guarding the temple.
• Generally, there is a temple tank within the compound.
• Subsidiary shrines could be found wither within the main tower or beside the main tower.
• In many temples, the garbhagriha is located in the smallest tower. It is also the oldest. With the passage of time and the rise of the population of the temple-town, additional boundary walls were added. The newest structure would mostly have the tallest gopuram.
• Example in the Sriranganathar Temple at Srirangam, Tiruchirappally, there are 7 concentric rectangular enclosure walls each having gopurams. The tower at the centre has the garbhagriha.
• Famous temple towns of Tamil Nadu: Kanchipuram, Thanjavur (Tanjore), Madurai and Kumbakonam.
• In the 8th to 12th centuries – temples were not confined to being religious centres but became administrative centres as well with large swathes of land.

Indian Bronze Sculptures

• Apart from sculpturing in terracotta and stone, ancient Indian artists were masters in bronze sculpting as well.
• The Lost Wax Technique or the ‘Cire-Perdu’ process has been known from the time of the Indus Valley Civilization itself. This process is in use even today.
• Bronze is an alloy of basically copper and tin. Sometimes zinc was also added although most of the component is copper.
• The alloy-making process of mixing metals was known to the ancient Indians.
• Bronze sculptures and statuettes of various icons of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism have been found from various parts of India dating from the 2nd century CE to the 16th century CE.
• Most of the images were used for religious and ritualistic purposes.
• The metal casting process was also used for making articles of daily use like utensils.

North India

• The statue of the Dancing Girl found from Mohenjo Daro is one of the finest examples of Indus Valley art. It is a bronze statue showing remarkable achievements of the artists of the Indus Valley. The figurine is about 4 inches tall. Datable to 2500 BC. It is said to be in the tribhanga It is one of the oldest bronze sculpture.
• Chariot at Daimabad: datable to 1500 BC.
• Images of Jain Teerthankaras
  Found in Chausa, Bihar belonging to the Kushana Period (2nd century CE).
  Images show the mastery of artists in modelling masculine human physique.
  A remarkable depiction of Adinath or Vrishabhanath (the first Teerthankara) with long hair (generally the Teerthankaras are shown with short curly hair).
• Buddha images have been found in north India, particularly UP and Bihar
  Standing Buddhas with the right hand in Abhaya Mudra.
  Gupta and pre-Gupta period.
  The Sanghati or the robe is wrapped over the shoulders and turn over the right arm, while the other end of the robe covers the left arm.
  The clothes of the Buddha figures are thin.
  Youthful and proportionate figures.
  Bronze images from Dhanesar Khera, UP: Mathura style drapery which is a series of dropping down curves.
  Buddha image at Sultanganj, Bihar: Sarnath style, less drapery.
  Bronze from Phophnar, Maharashtra: Vakataka images, contemporary to Gupta period. Influenced by the 3rd century Amaravati style from Andhra Pradesh. These images were portable and were carried by monks from place to place for personal worship or installation at a vihara.
• Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir regions Buddhist and Hindu deities
  Period: 8th, 9th and 10th
  Growth of different types of iconography of Vishnu images is seen.
  Worship of four-headed Vishnu: Chaturanana or Vaikuntha Vishnu.
   
• Nalanda School of Bronze (Buddhist)
  Emergence: 9th century CE. Pala Period.
  In regions of Bengal and Bihar.
  Four-armed Avalokiteswara: Good example of a male figure in the tribhanga pose.
  During the Vajrayana phase of Buddhism, worship of the female form was seen. Tara images were popular.

South India

The bronze casting technique and the sculpting of bronze images reached its zenith in the south during the medieval period.

Pallavas:

• Best Pallava bronze: Icon of Shiva in Ardhaparyanka asana (one leg kept dangling).
• Right hand in Achamana Mudra (indicating he is about to consume poison).
• Period: 8th century.

Cholas:

• Chola bronze art is the most sought-after today in the world of art.
• Period: 10th – 12th century CE.
• Exquisite pieces of art developed during this period. This technique is still practised in south India, particularly in Kumbakonam.
• Great patron of Chola bronze work: widowed queen Sembiyan Maha Devi (10th century).
• World famous image: Shiva as Nataraja. (discussed below)
• Wide range of Shiva iconography in the Tanjore region.
• Kalyanasundara Murti: 9th century; marriage is represented by 2 separate statuettes; Shiva and Parvati’s marriage or panigrahana.
• Ardhanarisvara image: union of Shiva and Parvati is represented.
• There are independent images of Parvati also.

Vijayanagara:

• Period: 16th century.
• Portrait sculpture is seen wherein artists tried to preserve the knowledge of the royal patrons for the future generation.
• Tirupati: There is a life-size standing bronze sculpture of King Krishnadevaraya with his 2 queens Tirumalamba and Chinnadevi.
• The physical body is shown as graceful and yet imposing.
• The king and his queens are in praying posture (Namaskara Mudra).

Indo-Islamic Architecture

• Islam came to India in the 7th and 8th centuries CE chiefly through Muslim traders, merchants, holy men and conquerors.
• The religion spread in India over a time period of 600 years.
• Muslims in Gujarat and Sind had begun construction work in the 8th century itself. But it was only in the 13th century that building activity on a large scale began by the Turkish State after the Turkish conquest of North India.
• Muslims absorbed many aspects of local architectural traditions and amalgamated them into their own practices.
• Architecturally, a mix of many techniques, stylised shapes and surface decorations evolved through a continuous amalgamation of architectural elements from the various styles. Such architectural entities that showcased multiple styles are known as Indo-Saracenic or Indo-Islamic architecture.
• While the Hindus were allowed to portray God in their art and were allowed to conceive manifestations of the divine in any form, the Muslims were forbidden by their religion to replicate living forms on any surface. So, their religious art and architecture mainly consisted of arabesque, calligraphy and geometrical patterns on plaster and stone.
• Types of architectural buildings: mosques for daily prayers, Jama Masjids, dargahs, tombs, hammams, minars, gardens, sarais or caravansarais, madrasas, Kos minars, etc.

Forts

• Forts symbolise the seat of power of a ruler. Many large forts with embattlements were built in the medieval times.
• When a fort was captured, it meant the ruler who owned the fort had to surrender.
• E.g.: Chittor, Gwalior and Daulatabad
• Chittorgarh is the largest fort in Asia.
• Forts were constructed using great heights so that they were impregnable to enemy forces. Inside there were places for offices and residences.
• Many complex features were added in the structure and design so as to making breaching the walls of the forts challenging.
• Golconda Fort (Hyderabad) had concentric circles of outer walls. Daulatabad Fort had staggered entrances so that even elephants could not be used to open the gates.

Minars

Minar was a form of stambha or tower.
Examples of medieval minars: Qutub Minar in Delhi, Chand Minar at Daulatabad Fort.
Everyday use of the minar: azaan (call to prayer).

Qutub Minar

• 13th century
• Construction started by Qutub-ud-din Aibak (Delhi Sultanate ruler) and completed by his successor Iltutmish.
• UNESCO World Heritage Site
• 234 feet high
• Tower is divided into five storeys
• Mix of polygonal and circular shapes
• Material: red and buff sandstone with some marble in the upper storeys
• Highly decorated balconies
• There are inscriptions intertwined with foliated designs
• It came to be associated with Khwaja Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, a revered saint of Delhi

Chand Minar, Daulatabad

• 15th century
• 210 feet high
• Tapering tower has four storeys
• Work of architects from Delhi and Iran

Tombs

• Tombs are monumental structures over the graves of rulers and royalty.
• They were a common medieval feature in India.
• Examples: tombs of Ghyasuddin Tughlaq, Humayun, Akbar, Abdur Rahim Khan-i-Khanan, Itmaduddaula.
• Idea behind the tomb according to Anthony Welch was “eternal paradise as a reward for the true believer on the Day of Judgement.”
• Walls had Quranic verses. Tombs were generally placed within paradisiacal elements like a garden or a water body or both (as in the Taj Mahal).

Sarais

• Sarais were built on a simple rectangular or square plan around cities.
• They were meant to provide temporary accommodation to travellers, traders, pilgrims, etc.
• They were basically public spaces and a hub of cross-cultural interaction.

Structures for Common People

• Buildings such as those for domestic usage, temples, mosques, dargahs, khanqahs, pavilions in the buildings and gardens, bazaars, commemorative gateways, etc.
• Here also, a mixing of styles, techniques and decorative patterns were seen. This was a feature of the medieval period.

Jama Masjid

• Large mosques sprang up during the medieval times in India.
• Congregational prayers were held every Friday afternoon. A quorum of 40 Muslim male adults was required for this to take place.
• At the time of the prayers, a khutba was read out in the name of the ruler along with his laws for the realm.
• Generally, a city had one Jama Masjid and this place became the centre of the town for religious, commercial and political activities.
• Generally, Jama Masjids were large with open courtyards.
• They were surrounded on three sides by cloisters with the Qibla Liwan to the west. The mihrab and the mimbar for the Imam were located here.
• The mihrab indicated the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and so people faced the mihrab while offering prayers.

Difference between Gandhara and Mathura School of Art

India has a rich and varied culture as characterized in the later art of the subcontinent, dating from the 14th through the 19th century. Art and culture is an important topic in the UPSC Exam. A substantial number of questions can be asked from the art and culture segment in UPSC Prelims as well as Mains examination. Here we are giving the major difference between Gandhara School of Art and Mathura school of Art.

GANDHARA SCHOOL OF ARTS

During Kushana rule the Gandhara art prospered in India. Above all, Kanishka, the greatest of the Kushanas was a famous backer of art and architecture. The Gandhara School of art flourished in his reign. Gandhara School was profoundly influenced by Greek methodologies.

The figures of Buddha were more spiritual and carved mainly in grey and bluish-grey color with the finest detailing.

MATHURA SCHOOL OF ARTS

The Mathura School of Art was entirely influenced by Indianism. The stone used in the Mathura school of arts was red sandstone. The sculptures were less spiritual.

They mostly used the spotted red sandstone for making sculptures and statues. The initial images of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva are happy and fleshy figures with little spirituality about them. The Mathura School of arts prided themselves on creating images of Buddha and they also made statues of many gods and goddesses such as Jain Tirthankaras.