1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
16L
16T
16ab
16s
17
18
19
20a
20b
21
22
23
24
24a1
24a2
25
26
27
28
29
30
30a
31
32
32y
33
34
g1,2,3,4,5
g6,7
g8,9,10,11,12
g13,14,15,16
g17,18,19
j1,2
j3,4
Ellora Cave Temples
Main hall
Splendidly decorated Cave 14 is a Hindu dedication that reflects the increasing focus on feminine divinities.(partial view of the left wall leading towards the garbhagriha).
The twelve pillars of the hall, their purnaghata capitals restrained by the dimensions of the original block, and with extensions above (only a few completed) show riders on fabulous animals with imaginative kirttimukhas. These owe much to their ornate prototypes in Cave 21 and 17; conventional dwarfs sit on the corners of the high square bases, enclosing panels primarily depicting loving couples or dallying triads. The shafts of these hall pillars are handsomely ornamented, with minor but distinct variations in their decorative bands. They are arranged in related pairs (following Vakataka precedents) matched either according to their adjacency, or by their disposition at the same points on opposite sides of the hall.
623 (_CAV2683.jpg)