Philippine E-Journals

The Buddhist Art and Architecture of Taxila

Muhammad Ilyas Bhatti

 

Abstract:

Taxila was the only big city in ancient India known to the Greeks, as many specimens have been unearthed through archaeological excavations. Long-lasting excavations at Taxila, which have revealed three successive city sites and about two dozen other monuments and diverse material which is the best means of studying the nature and level of various dynasties in ancient Pakistan. The earliest temples of Buddhism were buildings of wood and thatch erected. A number of foreign rulers like Greeks, Bactrians, Scythians or Sakas, Parthians, and the then Kushans gained control of the region and contributed to the growth of its art and culture. Taxila has yielded specimens of earliest stucco sculptures ever made in Indo-Pakistan sub-continent. Religious development in Taxila started in the 2nd century BCE and continuing to the 6th century CE; a fragmentary record extends the pattern to the 8th century CE. By using architectural evidence, numismatic data, masonry systems, and structural remains, the buildings were constructed on top of or against one another; it is possible to document periodic patterns and to determine a clear sequence for structural types used in Gandhara and Taxila sacred areas and monasteries. Taxila was the centre of a flourishing Buddhist tradition between the 2nd century BCE and the 6th century CE. People of this area became wealthy through international trade as objects were exchanged among India, China, and the Mediterranean.