CHAITYA HALLS KARLI

SUBMITED BY: DHARA DESAI

VIJAY LIMBASIYA

SUBMITED TO: BIRVA GHANDHI

PLAN OF CHAITYA HALLS

SECTION OF CHAITYA HALLS

Brief information

• The original chaitya hall of worship [from the vedic chaiti meaning sacred place] or sanctuary of worship was probably just a wooden shed with a thatched roof and a small stupa at one end. However during monsoon this proved to be inadequate shelter and the monastic congregation found it necessary to move to places that offered better protection.

• This they sought in natural caves used by ascecits [sadhus] for centuries . these caves , known as varshavatika or the permenant chaitya .the logical development from this to rock cut architecture Marks one of the most architectural traditions of india.

The chaitya halls• The earliest examples of rock cut

chaitya halls date back to about the 3rd century bc . Clues to the process of rock cutting are available at the unfinished caves.

• The process started at the ceiling level and moved down , and thus eliminating the need for scaffolding in the early stages. Many Categories of workers and types of skill were employed in the process , rock cutters who did the initial removal of the rock , masons who executed the more precise cutting and sculptors and polishers who performed the final finishing.

Architecture• The basic plan consisted of a hall deep into

the cave ending in an apse containing a stupa, with space around it for circumbulation.

• The roof was barrel-vaulted with the ribs of the wooden prototype clearly replicated in stone.

• The pillars used to support the beam of the original prototype were also replicated faithfully, though they were of no structural value in this essentially sculpted buildings. These stone replicas are evident that ancient indians had a well developed tradition of wooden architecture .

• The openings of the chaitya or entrance portals had sculpted facades , and were defined by a horseshoe arch reminiscent of the lift of the bodhi tree under which the buddha is believed to have gained enlightnment. This motif of bodhi tree was appropriated and later used in hindu architecture as well.

ELEVATION OF ENTRANCE