Page:An Elementary History of Art.djvu/38

8 Indian Architecture. remains of a once important royal city. They are hewn from rocks above ground. 3. Pagodas. — Hindu places of worship, consisting of detached buildings above ground. A pagoda consists of a group of structures sacred to the god, surrounded by seve- ral series of walls forming an enclosure. The central building is of pyramidal form, and is covered all over with pro- fuse ornamentation — sometimes even overlaid with strips of copper. The walls are generally of hewn stones of colossal size, and the gateways are ela- borate pyramidal structures of several stories. The pagodas of Mahavellipore and Jaggernaut are fine specimens of this style of building. A system of civilisation so vigorous Pillar in Hindu J . Temple. and advanced as that of the Hindus could not fail to exercise a lasting influence on surrounding nations ; and we find their religion and their style of art widely adopted in the large island groups, and the neigh- bouring continents. 4. Mosques. — But the most remarkable of all Indian buildings are those erected by the Mahomedan conquerors, who brought their own style with them, and combined it with the system of ornament prevalent amongst the natives. The city of Ahmedabad, the Moslem capital of Guzerat, is especially rich in mosques of surprising beauty. In front of them is usually a court-yard, surrounded on three sides by open colonnades, the mosque itself filling up the fourth side. Three large doors give access to the mosque,