Andhradesha School
The Andhradesha School is a significant school of sculpture that emerged in the eastern region of modern Andhra Pradesh, India, along the banks of the Krishna River. Flourishing primarily under the Sātavāhana and Ikṣvāku Dynasties, this artistic tradition is noted for its distinctive style that has influenced South Indian art for centuries. The origins of this sculptural style can be traced back to the time of Aśoka, who initiated the construction of the Great Stupa at Amaravātī around the 3rd century BCE. The Andhradesha School is characterized by the use of local greenish-white limestone, known as Palnad marble, which provided an elegant medium for intricate Buddhist monuments.
The school is celebrated for its remarkable naturalism, as seen in the dynamic and fluid representations of human figures adorned with detailed ornamentation. While primarily a Buddhist art tradition, the Ikṣvāku Dynasty, which had a Hindu focus, played a crucial role in promoting this artistic heritage, showcasing exceptional technical skill in places like Nagarjunakonda. Other notable sites associated with the Andhradesha School include Goli, Ghantashala, Bhattiprolu, and Gummadidurru. The rich legacy of the Andhradesha School highlights the region's historical and cultural significance in the evolution of South Indian sculpture.
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Andhradesha School
Related civilization: Ancient India.
Date: c. 200 b.c.e.-400 c.e.
Locale: Andhra Pradesh, south India
Andhradesha School
The Andhradesha (AHN-drah-DEH-shah) school of sculpture developed a distinct style that influenced the course of art in south India for centuries. The school was located in modern eastern Andhra Pradesh state along the Krishna River and was supported during the Sātavāhana Dynasty (c. 200 b.c.e.-225 c.e.) and Ikṣvāku Dynasties (c. 225-350 c.e.). The earliest work in the region actually dates to the time of Aśoka (c. 302-c. 238 b.c.e.) who began construction of the Great Stupa at Amaravātī; granite stone beams with the characteristic Mauryan polish have been recovered at the site.
By the late second to early first century b.c.e. under Sātavāhana rule, a distinctive sculptural tradition emerged as the fragments at Jaggayyapeta and Amaravātī demonstrate. The region’s greenish-white limestone (called Palnad marble) was a suitably elegant medium for embellishing the Buddhist monuments that proliferated during the next several centuries. The sculpted decoration of the railing (vedika) and casing stones of the Great Stupa and other monuments consisted of dense scenes of figures rendered with a fluid, confident naturalism. The elongated human images are dressed in festoons of precisely rendered ornament.
The members of the later Ikṣvāku Dynasty, although consisting of Hindus particularly devoted to Śiva, were important patrons of Buddhist art. The Ikṣvāku work at Nagarjunakonda emphasizes superb technical proficiency through its complex narrative reliefs with supple figures engaged in lively movements. Other important sites of the Andhradesha school are Goli, Ghantashala, Bhattiprolu, and Gummadidurru.
Bibliography
Knox, Robert. Amaravati: Buddhist Sculpture from the Great Stupa. London: British Museum Press, 1992.
Stone, Elizabeth Rosen. The Buddhist Art of Nagarjunakonda. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1994.