India Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! PreviewAdvancedSpecial charactersHelpHeadingLevel 2Level 3Level 4Level 5FormatInsertLatinLatin extendedIPASymbolsGreekGreek extendedCyrillicArabicArabic extendedHebrewBanglaTamilTeluguSinhalaDevanagariGujaratiThaiLaoKhmerCanadian AboriginalRunesÁáÀàÂâÄäÃãǍǎĀāĂ㥹ÅåĆćĈĉÇçČčĊċĐđĎďÉéÈèÊêËëĚěĒēĔĕĖėĘęĜĝĢģĞğĠġĤĥĦħÍíÌìÎîÏïĨĩǏǐĪīĬĭİıĮįĴĵĶķĹĺĻļĽľŁłŃńÑñŅņŇňÓóÒòÔôÖöÕõǑǒŌōŎŏǪǫŐőŔŕŖŗŘřŚśŜŝŞşŠšȘșȚțŤťÚúÙùÛûÜüŨũŮůǓǔŪūǖǘǚǜŬŭŲųŰűŴŵÝýŶŷŸÿȲȳŹźŽžŻżÆæǢǣØøŒœßÐðÞþƏəFormattingLinksHeadingsListsFilesDiscussionReferencesDescriptionWhat you typeWhat you getItalic''Italic text''Italic textBold'''Bold text'''Bold textBold & italic'''''Bold & italic text'''''Bold & italic textDescriptionWhat you typeWhat you getReferencePage text.<ref>[https://www.example.org/ Link text], additional text.</ref>Page text.[1]Named referencePage text.<ref name="test">[https://www.example.org/ Link text]</ref>Page text.[2]Additional use of the same referencePage text.<ref name="test" />Page text.[2]Display references<references />↑ Link text, additional text.↑ Link text=== Visual art === {{Main|Indian art}} [[File:MET DT5237 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|[[Gupta art|Gupta]] [[terracotta]] relief, [[Krishna]] Killing the [[Keshi (demon)|Horse Demon Keshi]], 5th century]] India has a very ancient tradition of art, which has exchanged many influences with the rest of [[Eurasia]], especially in the first millennium, when [[Buddhist art]] spread with Indian religions to [[Central Asia|Central]], [[East Asia|East]] and [[Southeast Asia]], the last also greatly influenced by Hindu art.<ref>Rowland, 185–198, 252, 385–466</ref> Thousands of [[Indus Valley civilisation#Seals|seals from the Indus Valley Civilization]] of the third millennium BCE have been found, usually carved with animals, but a few with human figures. The [["Pashupati" seal]], excavated in [[Mohenjo-daro]], Pakistan, in 1928–29, is the best known.{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=14–16}}{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=17–18}} After this there is a long period with virtually nothing surviving.{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=17–18}}{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=46–47}} Almost all surviving ancient Indian art thereafter is in various forms of religious [[Indian sculpture|sculpture]] in durable materials, or coins. There was probably originally far more in wood, which is lost. In north India [[Mauryan art]] is the first imperial movement.{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=35–46}}{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=67–70}}{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=22–24}} In the first millennium CE, [[Buddhist art]] spread with Indian religions to [[Central Asia|Central]], [[East Asia|East]] and [[Southeast Asia]], the last also greatly influenced by [[Hindu art]].{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=185–198, 252, 385–466}} Over the following centuries a distinctly Indian style of sculpting the human figure developed, with less interest in articulating precise anatomy than [[ancient Greek sculpture]] but showing smoothly flowing forms expressing ''prana'' ("breath" or life-force).{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=22, 88}}{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=35, 99–100}} This is often complicated by the need to give figures multiple arms or heads, or represent different genders on the left and right of figures, as with the [[Ardhanarishvara]] form of Shiva and [[Parvati]].{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=18–19}}{{Sfn|Blurton|1993|p=151}} Most of the earliest large sculpture is Buddhist, either excavated from Buddhist [[stupa]]s such as [[Sanchi]], [[Sarnath]] and [[Amaravati Stupa|Amaravati]],{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=32–38}} or is rock cut [[relief]]s at sites such as [[Ajanta Caves|Ajanta]], [[Karla Caves|Karla]] and [[Ellora]]. Hindu and Jain sites appear rather later.{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=43–55}}{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=113–119}} In spite of this complex mixture of religious traditions, generally, the prevailing artistic style at any time and place has been shared by the major religious groups, and sculptors probably usually served all communities.{{Sfn|Blurton|1993|pp=10–11}} [[Gupta art]], at its peak {{circa|{{CE|300}}|{{CE|500}}}}, is often regarded as a classical period whose influence lingered for many centuries after; it saw a new dominance of Hindu sculpture, as at the [[Elephanta Caves]].{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=111–121}}{{Sfn|Michell|2000|pp=44–70}} Across the north, this became rather stiff and formulaic after {{circa|{{CE|800}}}}, though rich with finely carved detail in the surrounds of statues.{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=212–216}} But in the South, under the [[Pallava dynasty|Pallava]] and [[Chola dynasty|Chola dynasties]], sculpture in both stone and bronze had a [[Chola art and architecture#Sculpture and bronzes|sustained period of great achievement]]; the large bronzes with Shiva as [[Nataraja]] have become an iconic symbol of India.{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=152–160}}{{Sfn|Blurton|1993|pp=225–227}} [[File:Unknown, Kangra, India - Krishna Fluting to the Milkmaids - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|''Krishna Fluting to the Milkmaids'', [[Kangra painting]], 1775–1785]] Ancient painting has only survived at a few sites, of which the crowded scenes of court life in the [[Ajanta Caves]] are by far the most important, but it was evidently highly developed, and is mentioned as a courtly accomplishment in Gupta times.{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=356–361}}{{Sfn|Rowland|1970|pp=242–251}} Painted manuscripts of religious texts survive from Eastern India about the 10th century onwards, most of the earliest being Buddhist and later Jain. No doubt the style of these was used in larger paintings.{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=361–370}} The Persian-derived [[Deccan painting]], starting just before the [[Mughal miniature]], between them give the first large body of secular painting, with an emphasis on portraits, and the recording of princely pleasures and wars.{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=202–208}}{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=372–382, 400–406}} The style spread to Hindu courts, especially [[Rajput painting|among the Rajputs]], and developed a variety of styles, with the smaller courts often the most innovative, with figures such as [[Nihâl Chand]] and [[Nainsukh]].{{Sfn|Craven|1997|pp=222–243}}{{Sfn|Harle|1994|pp=384–397, 407–420}} As a market developed among European residents, it was supplied by [[Company painting]] by Indian artists with considerable Western influence.{{Sfn|Craven|1997|p=243}}{{Sfn|Michell|2000|p=210}} In the 19th century, cheap [[Kalighat painting]]s of gods and everyday life, done on paper, were urban [[folk art]] from [[Calcutta]], which later saw the [[Bengal School of Art]], reflecting the art colleges founded by the British, the first movement in [[modern Indian painting]].{{Sfn|Michell|2000|pp=210–211}}{{Sfn|Blurton|1993|p=211}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page