Jain Thought and Culture

Author(s): G C Pandey
Publisher: University of Rajasthan

Page 99

Rajasthan's Coninbufian to Jain Iconography
87
Which suggests her Saria associations It is decided of a later date, end of 81h or carly 91h Century AD The Vasantgarh hoard also contains some Jain bronzes of the 8ll1 Century as also in the Anbota Hoard To this may be added a few pieces from Bhinmal, in Jalore district of Rajasthan Voteworthy are also a dozen bronzes from Amarsar and 11011 prescried 11 Bikaner Muscum This group also preserves a ChowTic-bearer3 which from artistic point of view, is sufficiently attractive and important
Ahar (Aghatapura, ficar Udaipur) secins to have been a great centre of Jain art during the inediacval period It was here that the famous Jam grant hat "Sravaka Pralı Kramana Churne' was painted in the 13111 Century It was here at Ahar that an Carly mediaeval bronze was uncarthed about 30 years ago Now preserved in the Archacological Site Muscum ol lhar, it is more than life size in height and depicts a seated Tirthanhara in ineditative pose 5 Rajasthan is cquclly rich in mediaeval Jain bronzes which are mostly under worship in different Jain Temples It was during the 15th Century that Dungarpur town, in South Western Rajasthan, became a famous centre of metal casting when the local sthapatis cxccuted colossal Jain images including some inscribcd pieces which are now under worship in the Jain Temple at Achalgarh on Mt Abu The names of the sculptors are also inscribed on these particular bronzes
It was from Jagat (district Udaipur) that we brought to Pratap Museum, Udaipur a 5th century statue of headless Ambika carved oul of the local grecnish-blue schist (i e pareva) 6 The goddess carries a bunch of mango-t wigs in the right hand and holds a baby to her lap with the left, thus testifying to her mother aspect But the utter absence of any Jaini emblem fails to locate her religious associalion On the other hand, the inscribed slab of VS 918 in the niche of Mata Ji Ki Sala at Ghatiyala (district Jodhpur) decidedly depicts Jain Amlıka on the remaining portion of the slab itself The goddess takes her seat on the lion This is a very interesting Pratihara Jain sculpture from Ghatiyala though her representation elsewhere in Rajasthani art is so well known to art historians
3 VS Srivastava, Catalogue and Guide to GOJ Museum, Bikaner, 1961 61, plate IV 4 This is now in Museum of Fine Arts at Boston 5 R C. Agrawala, Sculptures from Udaipur Museum, 1960, Jaipur, plate XXXI 6 Ibid , Plate II