Ajanta: Cave 9, façade, about 2nd-1st Century B.C.
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Photographer: Arthur Llewellyn Basham
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Of the 29 caves at Ajanta, only four are chaitya halls, and the others are Viharas (monk's dwelling), Cave No. 9, a chaitya structure, was built during the Hinayana phase (Lesser Vehicle) and is somewhat smaller than the first chaitya hall built (No. 10), but has no evidence of wooden construction as does No. 10, Present in the facade of No. 9 are two square windows on either side of the door, and above the portal itself is a broad chaitya window twelve feet in height to admit light and air into the interior, on the screen of the facade are spaces carved with Vedika designs (a pattern which resembles a railing of wood), although we can see a few statues of the Buddha on this facade, these were later additions and do not work into the present scheme of decoration, Most characteristic of the Chaitya facades, wherever they appear, is the horse-shoe arch over the entry, It invariably appears in these rock-cut sanctuaries and is commonly surmounted by a huge window (like that in our illustration) which is the only source of light for the dark nave beyond, The present example is typical of early facade types both in plan and decoration,
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Basham Collection
Date created
circa 1970s
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This image is provided for research purposes only and must not be reproduced without the prior permission of the Archives Program, Australian National University.
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