Ajanta paintings

  About Ajanta paintings:

• The Ajanta caves, an archaeological site consisting of around 30 rock cut caves, situated in Aurangabad (Maharashtra).
  • The unfinished caves, of which five (caves 9, 10, 19, 26 and 29) are chaitya grihas (sanctuary) and the rest, sangharamas or viharas (monastery).
• The caves at Ajanta are excavated out of a vertical cliff above the left bank of the river Waghora in the hills of Ajanta.
• These are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art that influenced Indian art that followed.
• The caves were built in two phases-
  • The first period spans the second and first centuries BCE, attributed the patronage of the Satavahana Dynasty and it is dominated by Hinayana/Theravadin followers of Buddhism.
  • The second was during the late fifth CE, possibly during the reign of the Vakataka king Harisena.It is dominated by the Mahayana followers of Buddhism.
• Its features:
  • These paintings were painted in the tempera style and filled with stories and illustrations of human figures, alive with drama.
  • Outlines were usually drawn using red ochre or carbon black, while organic substances such as plant fibres, plant seeds and rice husks were mixed into mud to create a mortar.
  • The first period depict floral patterns, geometrical shapes, animals and birds. Religious motifs are notably absent.
  • Murals from the second period depict iconic scenes from the Jatakas, including Asita’s visit to the infant Buddha, the temptation of Buddha by Mara and his forces, miracles performed by the Buddha and various scenes of battle and hunting etc.