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UPPCS Ancient History Gap Sheet: Art, Sculpture and Architecture.
UPPCS has asked 28 of these. 2 have not been asked yet. Lock the first list, then read the second: it holds what UPPCS has not used yet.
First, the concept
Identify a monument by function before style: a stupa holds sacred relics or memories, a chaitya is a worship hall and a vihara houses monks. Rock-cut structures are carved out of rock; structural temples are built from assembled materials.
Temple and sculpture questions mix material, region, patron and deity. Nagara and Dravida mainly describe architectural traditions; Gandhara, Mathura and Sarnath describe distinct sculptural centres and visual features.
✅ Already asked (28)
Forms and sculpture
- Stupa components · Anda is the dome, harmika the railing on top and chhatra the umbrella; torana is a gateway.
- Chaitya worship hall · Often contains a stupa as the focus of worship.
- Vihara residence · Monastic dwelling, usually with cells around a court or hall.
- Nagara shikhara · Northern tradition commonly uses a curving tower over the sanctum.
- Dravida vimana · Southern tradition commonly uses a tiered pyramidal tower over the sanctum.
- Gopuram gateway · Monumental entrance tower of a temple enclosure.
- Gandhara sculpture · North-west; Greco-Roman influence and frequent use of grey schist.
- Bhumisparsha mudra · Buddha touches the earth to witness enlightenment.
- Mandapa hall · Pillared hall used for worship and gatherings.
- Panchayatana layout · One central shrine with four subsidiary shrines at the corners.
Caves and monuments
- Sanchi stupa · Madhya Pradesh; early foundation linked with Ashoka, with later enlargements and gateways.
- Bharhut railings · Madhya Pradesh; early Buddhist narrative reliefs, including Jataka scenes.
- Ajanta murals · Maharashtra; Buddhist caves, with a major later phase under Vakataka patronage.
- Karle chaitya · Maharashtra; celebrated rock-cut Buddhist worship hall.
- Kanheri caves · Near Mumbai; large Buddhist cave complex.
- Ellora three religions · Maharashtra; Buddhist, Hindu and Jain caves coexist.
- Elephanta Shiva reliefs · Near Mumbai; famous for the three-faced Maheshmurti.
- Khajuraho temples · Madhya Pradesh; Chandela temples of Hindu and Jain traditions.
- Dilwara Jain temples · Mount Abu, Rajasthan; famous for marble work.
- Modhera Sun Temple · Gujarat; associated with Chaulukya ruler Bhima I.
- Lingaraja Temple · Bhubaneswar, Odisha; a major Nagara temple dedicated to Shiva.
- Angkor Wat · Cambodia; originally a Vishnu temple built under Suryavarman II in the twelfth century.
- Borobudur · Java, Indonesia; a major Buddhist monument.
UP art and sacred sites
- Mathura red sandstone · Mathura sculpture commonly used mottled red sandstone; Buddhist, Jain and Brahmanical images.
- Sarnath Buddha sculpture · Gupta images often show smooth robes and refined forms; famous seated Buddha in teaching pose.
- Bhitargaon brick temple · Kanpur district; Gupta-period brick temple with terracotta panels.
- Deogarh Dashavatara temple · Lalitpur district; early structural Vishnu temple with Gupta-period sculpture.
- Naimisharanya location · Sitapur district; an important pilgrimage centre.
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Forms and sculpture: 2
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⚠️ Ellora has Buddhist, Hindu and Jain caves; Ajanta is Buddhist. The Shore Temple is structural, while Ellora’s Kailasa is rock-cut.
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