Photographer: Arthur Llewellyn Basham2019-10-152019-10-15circa 1970IM-9645http://hdl.handle.net/1885/176798All representations of animals in Indian art show a profound sympathy and understanding for the animal world, comparable to that found in the delicate Chinese paintings of birds and beasts showing every soft feather and every hair of glistening fur. At Mahabalipuram, the sculpture does not dwell on infinite details in order to capture this same depth of expression, but rather successfully represents the massive character of the animals' forms: the elephants in our detail, for example, are convincingly vitalized masses ranging from a powerful bull to a pair of clumsy yet deliberate baby elephants. Due to the broad handling of forms, such as the elephants, there is a more organic and natural quality to the images which is so characteristic of the Pallava styles in India at this period.35mmmounted transparencyb&wsepiaimage/tiffen-AUPallava-- Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram) - Pallavaarchitecturestone sculptureslide set2019-10-15This item is provided for research purposes. Contact the Australian National University Archives at butlin.archives@anu.edu.au for permission to use.