Studies in Jaina Art

Author(s): Umakant P Shah
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

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STUDIES IN JAINA ART
School of Ancient West are yet unknown it is still difficult to make any surmise about its distinguishing features.
But it has now been possible to infer a few characteristics of this School of Art from the stone and metal sculptures recently brought to light and discussed by this writer.3 The School of Ancient West seems to have been a very vigorous one having passed through several stages of development during the march of time through several centuries. Earliest specimens which can be definitely assigned to this school may be noted :(I) The famous bronze image of Brahma in the Karachi Museum,
assigned by Dr. Coomaraswamy to the Gupta age. Though not inscribed, it cannot be placed later than c. 500 A. D. and may be
slightly earlier. (2) The mutilated bronze of Jivantasvāmi from Akoțā, with pedesta
lost, illustrated here as figs. 20, 21, which should be assigned to the
same age as Karachi Brahma. (3) Of a slightly later date is the image of Rşabhanātha from Akoţā,
installed by Jinabhadra Gaņi Kşamāśramaņa, discussed in Bulletin of the Prince of Wales Museum, Vol. I; No, I, Fig. 43 ff., fig. 21.
Also see Jaina Satyaprakāśa, Vol. 17. no. 4, pp. 86 ff and plate. The last mentioned bronze, studied as three-quarter profile, immediately suggests to us the beginnings of the tendencies manifested in later Western Indian Miniature Paintings, namely, the squarish face, elongated eyes and a pointed nose. The bronze, both from the script of its inscription and from the known dates of Jinabhadra, must be assigned to c. 500-550 A.D.
A study of the crowns and other ornaments of different Jaina bronzes from Vasantagadh and Akoțā assignable to c. 6th-7th century A.D., or of a few carvings on two small shrines at Rodā, Idar State, North Gujarat, has shown their close affinity with contemporary art at Ajanță.
3 In Journal of Indian Museums, Vol. VIII, pp. 49 tf ; Voi. IX. pp. 90 ff; Journ, of the Oriental Institute, Vol. I No. 2, pp. 161 ff.
4 My arguments for assigning it to a date between 400 and 500 A. D. are given in my Note on A koțà Hoard of Jaina Bronzes, published in the Baroda Through the Ages (M. S. University of Baroda, 1953), pp. 99 ff.
4 With these must also be noted the Tri-Tirthika image of Pārsva or Supārsva installed by Khambhila (Khandila ?) Āryikā of Nāgendra Kūla, c. 640 A. D.; illustrated as fig. 23 in my paper in the Bulletin of the Prince of Wales Museum, Vol. I, No. I, pp. 45 ff., and the bronze of Sarasvati from Vasantagadh, op. cit., fig. 20, also, Sarasvati from Akoţā, illustrated here in fig. 34.