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Prefatory Note
Kumbhāriyā is one of the important medieval Jaina temple sites in Gujarat, in fact in all western India. The marble temples that exist there are gradually becoming known for their splendid architecture of the Solankī period. Qualitatively, these can be reckoned as on par, and even for a few aspects excelling the world famous Delvādā temples on Mt. Abu. However, very little has been written on the religious history and not enough on the art of these buildings. Sheth Shri Shrenikbhai had for long time cherished a wish to make good this deficiency. When, therefore, a proposal was mooted and discussed some two years ago by Dr. Pradeep Mehendiratta, the Director-General and Vice-President of the American Institute of Indian Studies, New Delhi, to prepare and publish a comprehensive monograph on the temples in Kumbhāriya in collaboration with the L.D. Institute of Indology, to Sheth Shri Shrenikbhai (who besides being the Chairman of Sheth Anandji Kalyanji is also the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, L.D. Institute of Indology), it was wholeheartedly welcomed. The task of preparing a research-based and comprehensive monograph was entrusted to the well-known specialist on Indian temple architecture, Prof. M.A. Dhaky, the Director (Research, now Emeritus) of the AIIS who for over three decades is associated with the AIIS's prestigious project, the Encyclopaedia of Indian Temple Architecture. Prof. Dhaky, in collaboration with his colleague Dr. U.S. Moorti, the Jt. Director, AIIS, has fulfilled this task, using as he did his earlier field notes as well as the results of their recent joint reëxamination of the recorded data. The monograph incorporates illustrative material drawings and photographs got from the archival holdings of AIIS, supplemented by some more photographs made specially for this monograph by the “Sambodhi Saṁsthāna" Ahmedabad, through the intermediary of the Sharadaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre, Ahmedabad. The photo-artist Samir Pathak was assigned the job to which he did full justice. Shri Akhilesh Mishra of the SCERC did the laser
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