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chapter 15 bUIldINgS, paINTINgS

aNd bOOkS

BuIldIngs In BrIck and stone

The skills of our craftspersons prove that architecture had reached high degree of excellence
during the Gupta period. the perfection which the art of sculpture attained during this
period suggests that it had a long period of continues and steady development. The artistic
remains of this period may be described as temples, stupas, pillars, palaces and caves.
These buildings are made up of stones and bricks.

temples and stupas

Some of the earliest Hindu temples were also built in
the shrines to worship gods such as Vishnu, Shiva and
Durga. The most important Feature of the temple
was the garbhagriha, room where the image of the

chief deity was placed and the priests would perform
religious rituals and devotees offer worship to the deity.
Most temples also had an open space (hall) known as
the Mandapa where people could assemble and even The Great Stupa at Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh
did some religious ceremonies. Often a tower, known as the shikhara, was built on top of the
garbhagriha, which required careful planning. They were built to mark it out as a sacred place.

tHe Iron pIllar

Different archaeological sources like historical sites,
monuments, domes, architecture, sculpture, paintings,
literature, etc. provide us useful information for the
reconstruction of history of ancient India. Most of

the monuments of ancient India have perished due to
climatic conditions. But whatever is still intact, gives us
useful information about the ancient Indian history, for
Mehrauli Iron Pillar, Delhi example, the iron pillar of Delhi at Mehrauli. The iron
pillar at Mehrauli near Delhi is a wonderful example of the metallurgical skill of the Gupta
crafts persons. It is made of iron, 7.2 m high and weighs over 3 tonnes. It was made about 1500
years ago. However, the scholars have not been able to identify the king Chandra mentioned
on the Mehrauli Pillar Inscription and there is a lot of controversy among scholars on this point.
Iron pillar is a solid shaft of pure, rustless wrought iron, 40 centimeters in diameter. It is still

standing with the least sign of rusting or corrosion, though it has been exposed to the sun, rain
and storm for the last over 1500 years. In the Gupta period, the art of casting metals reached
a degree of development which may well be regarded as wonderful.

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