Hellenistic influence on Indian art

2021-06-05T09:29:29Z

202.142.79.54: Minor edit

[[File:Pataliputra Palace capital by L A Waddell 1895.jpg|thumb|300px|The [[Pataliputra capital]], a [[Hellenistic]] [[anta capital]] found in the [[Mauryan Empire]] palace of [[Pataliputra]], India, dated to the 3rd century BCE.]]
'''Hellenistic influence on Indian art and architecture''' reflects the artistic and architectural influence of the [[Greeks]] on [[Indian art]] following the conquests of [[Alexander the Great]], from the end of the 4th century BCE to the first centuries of the common era. The Greeks in effect maintained a political presence at the doorstep, and sometimes within India, down to the 1st century CE with the [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]] and the [[Indo-Greek Kingdoms]], with many noticeable influences on the arts of the [[Maurya Empire]] (c.321–185 BCE) especially.<ref name="Danielou"/> Hellenistic influence on Indian art was also felt for several more centuries during the period of [[Greco-Buddhist art]].<ref name="Danielou"/><ref>History of Civilizations of Central Asia: The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations: 700 B.C. to A.D. 250, Ahmad Hasan Dani, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1999, Paul Bernard, p. 128 and sig. [https://books.google.com/books?id=DguGWP0vGY8C&pg=PA128]</ref>

==Historical context==
===Pre-Hellenistic influences (518–327 BCE)===
[[File:Athens coin discovered in Pushkalavati.jpg|thumb|[[Athenian]] coin (minted c. 500/490 – 485 BCE) discovered in [[Pushkalavati]], [[Gandhara]]. This coin is the earliest known example of its type to be found so far east.<ref>[https://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=199773 CNG Coins]</ref>]]
{{see also|Chaman Hazouri hoard|Achaemenid invasion of the Indus Valley|Coinage of India}}
Coin finds in the [[Chaman Hazouri hoard]] in [[Kabul]] or the Shaikhan Dehri hoard in [[Pushkalavati]] have revealed numerous [[Achaemenid]] coins as well as many [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] coins from the 5th and 4th centuries BCE were circulating in the area, at least as far as the [[Indus]] during the rule of the [[Achaemenids]], who were in control of the areas as far as [[Gandhara]].<ref name=OB300>{{cite book |last1=Bopearachchi |first1=Osmund |title=“Coin Production and Circulation in Central Asia and North-West India (Before and after Alexander’s Conquest)” |pages=300-301 |url=https://www.academia.edu/15798938/_Coin_Production_and_Circulation_in_Central_Asia_and_North-West_India_Before_and_after_Alexander_s_Conquest_ |language=en}}</ref><ref>[https://www.cemml.colostate.edu/cultural/09476/afgh05-106.html US Department of Defense]</ref><ref name=JC>{{cite book |last1=Errington |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Trust |first2=Ancient India and Iran |last3=Museum |first3=Fitzwilliam |title=The Crossroads of Asia: transformation in image and symbol in the art of ancient Afghanistan and Pakistan |date=1992 |publisher=Ancient India and Iran Trust |isbn=9780951839911 |pages=57-59 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pfLpAAAAMAAJ |language=en}}</ref><ref name=OB308>{{cite book |last1=Bopearachchi |first1=Osmund |title=“Coin Production and Circulation in Central Asia and North-West India (Before and after Alexander’s Conquest)” |pages=308- |url=https://www.academia.edu/15798938/_Coin_Production_and_Circulation_in_Central_Asia_and_North-West_India_Before_and_after_Alexander_s_Conquest_ |language=en}}</ref> In 2007 a small coin hoard was discovered at the site of ancient [[Pushkalavati]] (Shaikhan Dehri) in [[Pakistan]], containing a [[tetradrachm]] minted in [[Athens]] c. 500/490 – 485 BCE, together with a number of local types as well as silver cast ingots. The Athens coin is the earliest known example of its type to be found so far to the east.<ref>[https://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=199773 CNG Coins]</ref>

According to [[Joe Cribb]], these early Greek coins were at the origin of Indian [[punch-marked coins]], the earliest coins developed in India, which used minting technology derived from Greek coinage.<ref name=JC/> [[Daniel Schlumberger]] also considers that punch-marked bars, similar to the many punch-marked bars found in northwestern India, initially originated in the Achaemenid Empire, rather than in the Indian heartland:

{{quote|“The punch-marked bars were up to now considered to be Indian (...) However the weight standard is considered by some expert to be Persian, and now that we see them also being uncovered in the soil of Afghanistan, we must take into account the possibility that their country of origin should not be sought beyond the Indus, but rather in the oriental provinces of the Achaemenid Empire"|[[Daniel Schlumberger]], quoted from Trésors Monétaires, p. 42.<ref name=OB308/>}}

===Hellenistic period (327 BCE onward)===
[[File:Alexander victory coin Babylon silver c 322 BCE.jpg|thumb|"Victory coin" of Alexander the Great, minted in [[Babylon]] c. 322 BCE, following his campaigns in the subcontinent.<br>'''Obv''': Alexander being crowned by [[Nike (mythology)|Nike]].<br>'''Rev''': Alexander attacking king [[King Porus|Porus]] on his elephant.<br>Silver. [[British Museum]].]]
The [[Greek conquests in India]] under [[Alexander the Great]] were limited in time (327–326 BCE) and in extent, but they had extensive long term effects as Greeks settled for centuries at the doorstep of India.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Errington |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Trust |first2=Ancient India and Iran |last3=Museum |first3=Fitzwilliam |title=The Crossroads of Asia: transformation in image and symbol in the art of ancient Afghanistan and Pakistan |date=1992 |publisher=Ancient India and Iran Trust |isbn=9780951839911 |page=59 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pfLpAAAAMAAJ |language=en}}</ref> Soon after the departure of Alexander, the Greeks (described as [[Yona]] or [[Yavana]] in Indian sources from the Greek "[[Ionians|Ionian]]") may then have participated, together with other groups, in the armed uprising of [[Chandragupta Maurya]] against the [[Nanda Dynasty]] around 322 BCE, and gone as far as [[Pataliputra]] for the capture of the city from the Nandas. The [[Mudrarakshasa]] of Visakhadutta as well as the [[Jain]]a work Parisishtaparvan talk of Chandragupta's alliance with the Himalayan king Parvatka, often identified with [[Porus]].<ref>Chandragupta Maurya and His Times, Radhakumud Mookerji, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1966, pp. 26–27 [https://books.google.com/books?id=i-y6ZUheQH8C&pg=PA27]</ref> According to these accounts, this alliance gave Chandragupta a composite and powerful army made up of [[Yavana]]s (Greeks), [[Kambojas]], [[Saka|Shaka]]s (Scythians), [[Kiratas]] (Nepalese), [[Persian people|Parasika]]s (Persians) and [[Bahlikas]] (Bactrians) who took [[Pataliputra]].<ref>Chandragupta Maurya and His Times, Radhakumud Mookerji, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1966, p. 27 [https://books.google.com/books?id=i-y6ZUheQH8C&pg=PA27]</ref><ref>History Of The Chamar Dynasty, Raj Kumar, Gyan Publishing House, 2008, p. 51 [https://books.google.com/books?id=eEJ-sXBmBIkC&pg=PA51]</ref><ref>"[[Pataliputra|Kusumapura]] was besieged from every direction by the forces of [[Porus|Parvata]] and Chandragupta: Shakas, Yavanas, Kiratas, Kambojas, Parasikas, Bahlikas and others, assembled on the advice of [[Chanakya]]" in [[Mudrarakshasa]] 2. Sanskrit original: "asti tava Shaka-Yavana-Kirata-Kamboja-Parasika-Bahlika parbhutibhih Chankyamatipragrahittaishcha Chandergupta Parvateshvara balairudidhibhiriva parchalitsalilaih samantaad uprudham Kusumpurama". From the French translation, in "Le Ministre et la marque de l'anneau", {{ISBN|2-7475-5135-0}}</ref>

After these events, the Greeks were able to maintain a structured presence at the door of India for about three centuries, through the [[Seleucid Empire]] and the [[Greco-Bactrian kingdom]], down to the time of the [[Indo-Greek kingdoms]], which ended sometimes in the 1st century CE. During that time, the city of [[Ai-Khanoum]], capital of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, and the capitals of the Indo-Greek Kingdom, the cities of [[Sirkap]], founded in what is now Pakistan on the Greek [[Hippodamian]] grid plan, and [[Sagala]], now located in Pakistan 10 km from the border with India, interacted heavily with the Indian subcontinent. It is considered that Ai-Khanoum and Sirkap may have been primary actors in transmitting Western artistic influence to India, for example in the creation of the quasi-Ionic [[Pataliputra capital]] or the floral friezes of the [[Pillars of Ashoka]].<ref name="Boardman, 15">Boardman, 15</ref> Numerous Greek ambassadors, such as [[Megasthenes]], [[Deimachus]] and [[Dionysius (ambassador)|Dionysius]], stayed at the Mauryan court in Pataliputra.

The scope of adoption goes from designs such as the [[bead and reel]] pattern, the central [[flame palmette]] design and a variety of other [[molding (decorative)|molding]]s, to the lifelike rendering of animal sculpture and the design and function of the Ionic [[anta capital]] in the palace of [[Pataliputra]].<ref>Boardman, 15-19</ref> After the 1st century CE, Hellenistic influence continued to be perceived in the syncretic [[Greco-Buddhist art]] of Gandhara, down to the 4th–5th centuries CE. Arguably, Hellenistic influence continued to be felt indirectly in India arts for many centuries thereafter.

==Influence on Indian monumental stone architecture (268–180 BCE)==
[[File:AiKhanoumAndIndia.jpg|thumb|The [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]] and the Hellenistic city of [[Ai-Khanoum]] were located at the very doorstep of India.]]
[[File:AsokaKandahar.jpg|thumb|[[Ashoka]]'s [[Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription]] in Greek and Aramaic.]]
During the Maurya period (c. 321–185 BCE), and especially during the time of Emperor [[Ashoka]] (c.268–232 BCE), Hellenistic influence seems to have played a role in the establishment of Indian monumental stone architecture. Excavations in the ancient palace of [[Pataliputra]] have brought to light Hellenistic sculptural works, and Hellenistic influence appear in the [[Pillars of Ashoka]] at about the same period.

According to [[John Boardman (art historian)|John Boardman]], there were Hellenistic influences on Indian stone architecture. However, the sites and sources of these influences are "not always properly identified or yet identifiable".<ref name="Boardman, 14">Boardman, 14</ref> Three broad theories have been proposed. One was held by early scholars such as [[Percy Brown (art historian)|Percy Brown]] in which stone Indian architecture used immigrant craftsmen experienced in the Persian [[Achaemenid Empire|Achaemenid imperial]] style, which included much Greek input, to which further more direct Hellenistic influence was added. The second was held by later scholars such as John Irwin who favour mostly indigenous Indian inspiration, and a third held by [[Swaraj Prakash Gupta|S.P. Gupta]] and others, who favour a combination.<ref name="Boardman, 13">Boardman, 13</ref><ref name="Gupta1980p1"/>

Boardman compares the appearance of stone architecture in Persia and India; to some extent the new empires of the Achaemenids and Mauryans faced similar issues in "creating stone architecture suitable to the aspirations of empire", when neither country had a tradition of building in stone.<ref name="Boardman, 13"/> Persian conquests had included areas with important traditions of large-scale building in brick or stone; in India there was probably a tradition of large and intricate building in wood, although remains of this are naturally very few.<ref name="Boardman, 14"/> It is possible that the difficult pass through the [[Hindu Kush]] and locations to the northwest of it such as Ai-Khanoum, a Greek city of Bactria in 3rd-century BCE and about {{convert|600|km}} from [[Kabul]], could have provided the conduit to connect the Hellenistic and Indian artists. Alternatively, the influence could have come from the ancient Persian [[Persepolis]], now near [[Shiraz]] in southwest [[Iran]] and about {{convert|2200|km}} from Kabul. However, a major issue that this proposal faces is that Persepolis was destroyed about 80 years before the first Buddhist stone architecture and arts appeared. This leaves the question whether, to what extent and how knowledge was preserved or transferred over the generations between the fall of Persepolis (330 BCE) and the rise of Ashokan era art to its east (after 263 BCE).<ref name="Boardman, 14"/><ref name="Gupta1980p1">{{cite book|author=Swarajya Prakash Gupta|title=The Roots of Indian Art|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XmqkSgAACAAJ|year=1980|isbn=978-8176467667|publisher=B.R. Publishing|pages=1–30}}</ref>

===Extent of relations===
Numerous contacts have been recorded between the [[Maurya Empire]] and the Greek realm. [[Seleucus I Nicator]] attempted to conquer India in 305 BCE, but he finally came to an agreement with [[Chandragupta Maurya]], and signed a treaty which, according to [[Strabo]], ceded a number of territories to Chandragupta, including large parts of what is now [[Afghanistan]] and Pakistan. A "marital agreement" was also concluded, and Seleucus received five hundred war elephants, a military asset which would play a decisive role at the [[Battle of Ipsus]] in 301 BCE.<ref>With Arrow, Sword, and Spear: A History of Warfare in the Ancient World, Alfred S. Bradford, Pamela M. Bradford
Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001, p. 125 [https://books.google.com/books?id=dY86rHCI1I8C&pg=PA125]</ref><ref>Ancient Ethnography: New Approaches, Eran Almagor, Joseph Skinner, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013, p. 104 [https://books.google.com/books?id=GHoSBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA105]</ref>

Later, numerous ambassadors visited the Indian court in Pataliputra, especially [[Megasthenes]] to Chandragupta, later [[Deimakos]] to his son [[Bindusara]], and later again [[Ptolemy II Philadelphus]], the ruler of [[Ptolemaic Egypt]] and contemporary of [[Ashoka]], is also recorded by [[Pliny the Elder]] as having sent an ambassador named [[Dionysius (ambassador)|Dionysius]] to the Mauryan court.<ref name="perseus.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de">{{cite web|url=http://perseus.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Plin.+Nat.+6.21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728023626/http://perseus.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Plin.+Nat.+6.21 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-07-28 |title=Pliny the Elder, The Natural History (eds. John Bostock, M.D., F.R.S., H.T. Riley, Esq., B.A.) }}</ref> [[Ashoka]] made communications with Greek populations on the site of [[Alexandria Arachosia]] ([[Old Kandahar]]), using the [[Kandahar Bilingual Rock Inscription]] or the [[Kandahar Greek Inscription]].

The [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]] with its capital of [[Ai-Khanoum]] maintained a strong Hellenistic presence at the doorstep of India from 280–140 BCE, and after that date went into India itself to form [[Indo-Greek kingdoms]] which would last until the 1st century CE. At the same time, Ashoka wrote some of his [[Edicts of Ashoka|edicts]] in Greek, and claimed to have sent ambassadors to Greek rulers as far as the Mediterranean, suggesting his willingness to communicate with the Hellenistic realm.

===Instances of Hellenistic influence===
{{See also|Mauryan art|Architecture of India}}
During that period, several instance of artistic influence are known, particular in the area of monumental stone sculpture and statuary, an area with no known precedents in India. The main period of stone architectural creation seems to correspond to the period of Ashoka's reign (c.?268–232 BCE).<ref name="Boardman, 14"/> Before that, Indians may have had a tradition of wooden architecture, but no remains have ever been found to prove that point. However remains of wooden palisades were discovered at archaeological sites in [[Pataliputra]], confirmed Classical accounts that the city had such wooden ramparts. The first examples of stone architecture were also found in the palace compound of Pataliputra, with the distinctly Hellenistic [[Pataliputra capital]] and a pillared hall using polished-stone columns. The other remarkable example of monumental stone architecture is that of the [[Pillars of Ashoka]], themselves displaying Hellenistic influence.<ref>Boardman, 15–16</ref> Overall, according to Boardman, "the visual experience of many Ashokan and later city dwellers in India was considerably conditioned by foreign arts, translated to an Indian environment, just as the archaic Greek had been by the Syrian, the Roman by the Greek, and the Persian by the art of their whole empire".<ref>Boardman, 21</ref>

====Pataliputra capital (3rd century BCE)====
[[File:Pataliputra capital front.jpg|thumb|Front of the [[Pataliputra capital]], found in [[Pataliputra]] and dated to the 3rd century BCE.]]
{{main|Pataliputra capital}}
The [[Pataliputra capital]] is a monumental rectangular [[capital (architecture)|capital]] with [[volute]]s and [[Classical Greece|Classical]] designs, that was discovered in the palace ruins of the ancient [[Mauryan Empire]] capital city of [[Pataliputra]] (modern [[Patna]], northeastern India). It is dated to the 3rd century BCE. It is, together with the [[Pillars of Ashoka]] one of the first known examples of Indian stone architecture, as no Indian stone monuments or sculptures are known from before that period.<ref name="Danielou"/> It is also one of the first archaeological clues suggesting Hellenistic influence on the arts of India, in this case sculptural palatial art. The [[Archaeological Survey of India]], an Indian government agency attached to the [[Ministry of Culture (India)|Ministry of Culture]] that is responsible for [[archaeology|archaeological]] research and the conservation and preservation of cultural monument in India, straightforwardly describes it as "a colossal capital in the Hellenistic style".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_imp_bihar.asp |title=Archaeological Survey of India report |access-date=2016-11-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161208173144/http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_imp_bihar.asp |archive-date=2016-12-08 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Although this capital was a major piece of architecture in the Mauryan palace of [[Pataliputra]], since most of Pataliputra was not excavated, and remains hidden under the modern city of [[Patna]], it is impossible to know the exact nature or extent of the monuments or the buildings that incorporated it.

[[:File:Sarnath_Mauryan_capital.jpg|One capital from Sarnath]] is known, which seems to be an adaptation of the design of the Pataliputra capital. This other capital is also said to be from the [[Maurya Empire|Mauryan]] period. It is, together with the Pataliputra capital, considered as "stone brackets or capitals suggestive of the Ionic order".<ref>"The Archaeology of Early Historic South Asia: The Emergence of Cities and States" F. R. Allchin, George Erdosy, Cambridge University Press, 1995, listed in page xi [https://books.google.com/books?id=Q5kI02_zW70C&pg=PR11]</ref> A later capital found in [[Mathura]] dating to the 2nd or 3rd century ([[Kushan Empire|Kushan period]]) displays a central palmette with side volutes in a style described as "Ionic", in the same kind of composition as the Pataliputra capital but with a coarser rendering. ([https://issuu.com/dallasmuseumofart/docs/dma_artsofindiasoutheastasia2/54 photograph]).<ref>The Arts of India, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas at the Dallas Museum of Art, Published on Dec 12, 2013. Article with photograph [https://issuu.com/dallasmuseumofart/docs/dma_artsofindiasoutheastasia2/54]</ref>

====Pillars of Ashoka (3rd century BCE)====
[[File:Sphinx of Naxos and Pillar of Ashoka.jpg|thumb|Greek votive columns such as the [[Sphinx of Naxos]], [[Delphi]], 560 BCE (left), may have influenced the creation of the [[Pillars of Ashoka]], 250 BCE (here at [[Lauria Nandangarh]]).<ref name="GI"/>]]
The [[Pillars of Ashoka]] were built during the reign of the [[Maurya Empire]] [[Ashoka]] c. 250 BCE. They were new attempts at mastering stone architecture, as no Indian stone monuments or sculptures are known from before that period.<ref name="Danielou"/>

There are altogether seven remaining capitals, five with lions, one with an elephant and one with a [[zebu]] bull. One of them, the four lions of [[Sarnath]], has become the [[State Emblem of India]]. The animal capitals are composed of a [[Nelumbo nucifera|lotiform]] base, with an [[abacus (architecture)|abacus]] decorated with floral, symbolic or animal designs, topped by the realistic depiction of an animal, thought to each represent a traditional direction in India.

[[File:Sarnath Ashoka Capital Horse motif.jpg|thumb|left|The horse motif on the [[Sarnath]] [[Lion Capital of Ashoka]], is often described as an example of Hellenistic realism.<ref name="Danielou">A Brief History of India, [[Alain Daniélou]], Inner Traditions / Bear & Co, 2003, pp. 89–91 [https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofin00dani/page/89]</ref>]]
Various foreign influences have been described in the design of these capitals.<ref>The pillars "owe something to the pervasive influence of Achaemenid architecture and sculpture, with no little Greek architectural ornament and sculptural style as well. Notice the florals on the bull capital from Rampurva, and the style of the horse of the Sarnath capital, now the emblem of the Republic of India." "The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity" by John Boardman, Princeton University Press, 1993, p. 110</ref>

Greek columns of the 6th century BCE such as the [[Sphinx of Naxos]], a 12.5m Ionic column crowned by a sitting animal in the religious center of [[Delphi]], may have been an inspiration for the pillars of Ashoka.<ref name="GI">Graeco-Indica, India's cultural contexts with the Greek world, Ramanand Vidya Bhawan, 1991, p. 5</ref> Many similar columns crowned by sphinxes were discovered in ancient Greece, as in [[Sparta]], [[Athens]] or [[Spata]], and some [[:File:Marble stele (grave marker) of a youth and a little girl 530 BCE Greece.jpg|were used as funerary steles]].<ref name="GI"/> The Greek [[sphinx]], a lion with the face of a human female, was considered as having ferocious strength, and was thought of as a guardian, often flanking the entrances to temples or royal tombs.<ref>Stewart, Desmond. Pyramids and the Sphinx. [S.l.]: Newsweek, U.S., 72. Print.</ref> Placing animals on top of a lotiform capital also reminds of [[Achaemenid]] columns.

The animals, especially the horse on the [[Sarnath]] [[Lion Capital of Ashoka]] or the bull of the [[Rampurva|Rampurva capital]] are said to be typically Greek in realism, and belong to a type of highly realistic treatment which cannot be found in [[Persia]].<ref name="Danielou"/>

The [[Abacus (architecture)|abacus]] parts also often seem to display a strong influence of [[Greek art]]: in the case of the [[Rampurva]] bull or the [[Sankassa]] elephant, it is composed of [[flame palmette]]s alternated with stylized [[Nelumbo nucifera|lotuses]] and small [[rosette (design)|rosettes]] flowers.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=9jb364g4BvoC&pg=PA40 "Buddhist Architecture" by Huu Phuoc Le, Grafikol, 2010, p. 40]</ref> A similar kind of design can be seen in the frieze of the lost capital of the [[Allahabad pillar]]. These designs likely originated in Greek and Near-Eastern arts.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=9jb364g4BvoC&pg=PA44 "Buddhist Architecture" by Huu Phuoc Le, Grafikol, 2010, p. 44]</ref><ref name="Danielou"/> They would probably have come from the neighboring [[Seleucid Empire]], and specifically from a Hellenistic city such as [[Ai-Khanoum]], located at the doorstep of India.<ref name="Boardman, 15"/>

====Temple architecture (3rd century BCE)====
{{multiple image
| align = right
| caption_align = center
| image1 = Remnants_of_Stupa.jpg
| width1 = 200
| caption1 = Remains of the circular temple at [[Bairat]]. A stupa was located in the center, with a colonnade and a circular wall around.
| image2 = Adoration_of_the_Diamond_Throne_and_the_Bodhi_Tree_Bharhut_relief.jpg
| width2 = 80
| caption2 = Ashoka's circular [[Mahabodhi Temple]]. [[Bharhut]].
| image3 = Tholos_esquema.gif
| width3 = 122
| caption3 = Plan of a Greek [[Tholos (architecture)|Tholos]] temple.
}}
Some of the earliest free-standing temples in India are thought to have been of a circular type, as the [[:File:Remnants_of_Stupa.jpg|Bairat Temple]] in [[Bairat]], [[Rajasthan]], formed of a central stupa surrounded by a circular colonnade and an enclosing wall, built during the time of Ashoka and near which were found several [[Minor Rock Edicts]].<ref name=BA233>Le Huu Phuoc, 2009, pp. 233–237</ref> [[Ashoka]] also built the [[Mahabodhi Temple]] in [[Bodh Gaya]] c. 250 BCE, also a circular structure, in order to protect the [[Bodhi tree]]. Representations of this early temple structure are found [[:File:Adoration_of_the_Diamond_Throne_and_the_Bodhi_Tree_Bharhut_relief.jpg|on a 100 BCE relief]] from the stupa railing at [[Bharhut|Bhārhut]], as well as in [[Sanchi]].<ref>"Sowing the Seeds of the Lotus: A Journey to the Great Pilgrimage Sites of Buddhism, Part I" by John C. Huntington. ''Orientations'', November 1985 pg 61</ref> These circular-type temples were also found in later rock-hewn caves such as [[Tulja Caves]] or [[Guntupalli Group of Buddhist Monuments|Guntupalli]].<ref name=BA233/>

It has been suggested that these circular structures with colonnades may have originated with the Greek circular [[Tholos (architecture)|Tholos]] temple, as in the [[Tholos of Delphi]], but circular wooden huts in India could also have been an inspiration.<ref name=BA233/>

====Diamond throne of Bodh Gaya (3rd century BCE)====
[[File:Greek and Indian flame palmettes.jpg|thumb|350px|Greek and Indian [[flame palmette]]s. ''Left'': Flame palmette at [[Didyma]], [[Ionia]], c.300 BCE. ''Middle'': [[Pataliputra capital]], India, c.3rd century BCE. ''Right'': [[Ashoka]]'s [[Diamond throne]], [[Bodh Gaya]], India, 250 BCE.]]
{{main|Diamond throne}}
The [[Diamond throne]], or ''Vajrasana'', is a throne in the [[Mahabodhi Temple]] at [[Bodh Gaya]], built by king [[Ashoka]] c. 260 BCE,<ref name="Ching">A Global History of Architecture, Francis D.K. Ching, Mark M. Jarzombek, Vikramaditya Prakash, John Wiley & Sons, 2017 [https://books.google.com/books?id=SPqKDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT570 p. 570ff]</ref> in order to mark the place where the Buddha reached enlightenment.<ref>"Ashoka did build the Diamond throne at Bodh Gaya to stand in for the Buddha and to mark the place of his enlightenment" in A Global History of Architecture, Francis D.K. Ching, Mark M. Jarzombek, Vikramaditya Prakash, John Wiley & Sons, 2017 [https://books.google.com/books?id=SPqKDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT570 p. 570ff]</ref> Ashoka is thought to have visited Bodh Gaya around 260 BCE, about 10 years into his reign, as explained by his [[Edicts of Ashoka|Rock Edict number VIII]].<ref>Asoka, Mookerji Radhakumud Motilal Banarsidass Publisher, 1962 [https://books.google.com/books?id=uXyftdtE1ygC&pg=PA18 p. 18]</ref>

The Diamond throne contains carvings of [[honeysuckle]]s and [[geese]], which can also be found on several of the [[Pillars of Ashoka|pillar capital of Ashoka]].<ref name="Huu Phuoc">Buddhist Architecture, Huu Phuoc Le, Grafikol, 2010 [https://books.google.com/books?id=9jb364g4BvoC&pg=PA240 p. 240]</ref>

====Decorative moldings and sculptures====
[[File:Rampurva bull capital detail.jpg|thumb|[[Rampurva|Rampurva bull capital]], detail of the [[abacus (architecture)|abacus]], with two [[palmette|"flame palmettes"]] framing a lotus surrounded by small rosette flowers.]]
[[File:Frieze of capital of Lat at Allahabad.jpg|thumb|Two lotuses framing a "flame palmette" surrounded by small rosette flowers, over a band of [[bead and reel|beads and reels]]. [[Allahabad pillar]], circa 250 BCE.]]
[[File:MauryanRingstone.JPG|thumb|Hellenistic "[[flame palmette]]" designs have also been identified on Mauryan ringstones, here framing the image of a goddess.<ref name="Boardman, 16">Boardman, 16]</ref>]]

=====Flame palmette=====
The [[flame palmette]], central decorative element of the Pataliputra pillar is considered as a purely Greek motif. The first appearance of "flame palmettes" goes back to the stand-alone floral [[Acroterion|akroteria]] of the [[Parthenon]] (447–432 BCE),<ref> NEW FRAGMENTS OF THE PARTHENON ACROTERIA, The American School of Classical Studies at Athens [http://www.ascsa.edu.gr/pdf/uploads/hesperia/148041.pdf]</ref> and slightly later at the [[Temple of Athena Nike]].<ref>The Sanctuary of Athena Nike in Athens: Architectural Stages and Chronology, Ira S. Mark, ASCSA, 1993, p. 83 [https://books.google.com/books?id=0kaLJOgRoRoC&pg=PA83]</ref> Flame palmettes were then introduced into friezes of floral motifs in replacement of the regular palmette. Flame palmettes are used extensively in India floral friezes, starting with the floral friezes on the capitals of the pillar of Ashoka, and they are likely to have originated with Greek or Near Eastern art.<ref>Buddhist Architecture by Huu Phuoc Le, Grafikol, 2010 [https://books.google.com/books?id=9jb364g4BvoC&pg=PA44 p. 44]</ref> A monumental flame palmette can be seen on the top of the [[Sunga]] gateway at [[Bharhut]] (2nd century BCE).

=====Botanical combinations=====
According to Boardman, although lotus friezes or palmette friezes were known in [[Mesopotamia]] centuries before, the unnatural combination of various botanical elements which have no relationship in the wild, such as the palmette, the lotus and sometimes rosette flowers, is a purely Greek innovation, which was then adopted on a very broad geographical scale.<ref name="Boardman, 16"/>

=====Bead and reel=====
According to art historian John Boardman, the bead and reels motif was entirely developed in Greece from motifs derived from the turning techniques used for wood and metal, and was first employed in stone sculpture in Greece during the 6th century BCE. The motif then spread to [[Persia]], [[Egypt]] and the Hellenistic world, and as far as India, where it can be found on the abacus part of some of the [[Pillars of Ashoka]] or the [[Pataliputra capital]].<ref>Boardman, 16 and others</ref>

===Influence on monumental statuary===
[[File:Mathura Herakles.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Mathura Herakles]]. A statue of [[Herakles]] strangling the [[Nemean lion]], from [[Mathura]]. Also: [http://www2.nau.edu/~d-ctel/hum/hum362/slideshows/Kushan_Mathura/images/img0073.jpg]. [[Kolkota]] [[Indian Museum]].]]
{{See also|Mathura art}}
Hellenistic arts may have been influential in early statuary (Mauryan and Sunga periods). A few monumental [[Yaksha]]s are considered as the earliest free-standing statues in India .<ref name="John Boardman 1993, p.112">John Boardman, "The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity", Princeton University Press, 1993, p. 112</ref> The treatment of the dress especially, with lines of geometric folds, is considered as a Hellenistic innovation. There are no known previous example of such statuary in India, and they closely resemble [[Archaic Greece|Greek Late Archaic]] mannerism which could have been transmitted to India through [[Achaemenid]] [[Persia]].<ref>"It has no local antecedents and looks most like a Greek Late Archaic mannerism" (John Boardman, "The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity", Princeton University Press, 1993, p. 112.)</ref> This motif appears again in the [[Sunga]] works of [[Bharhut]], especially on a depiction of on a foreign soldier, but the same treatment of the dress is also visible on purely Indian figures.

In some cases, a clear influence from the art of Gandhara can also be felt, as in the case of the Hellenistic statue of [[Herakles]] strangling the [[Nemean lion]], discovered in Mathura, and now in the [[Kolkota]] [[Indian Museum]], as well as [[Bacchanalian]] scenes.<ref>Aspects of Indian Art, by J.E. Van Lohuizen-De Leuve, published by Pratapaditya Pal [https://books.google.com/books?id=ttEUAAAAIAAJ&pg=PR7]</ref><ref>Hellenism in Ancient India by Gauranga Nath Banerjee [https://books.google.com/books?id=mCtKn4J1n38C&pg=PA90 p. 90]</ref><ref>Art of India by Vincent Arthur Smith [https://books.google.com/books?id=s3elCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT98 p. 98]</ref> Although inspired from the art of Gandhara, the portraiture of Herakles is not perfectly exact and may show a lack of understanding of the subject matter, as Herakles is shown already wearing the skin of the lion he is fighting.<ref>History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: c.150 BCE – 100 CE by Sonya Rhie Quintanilla [https://books.google.com/books?id=X7Cb8IkZVSMC&pg=PA158 p. 158]</ref><ref>The Dynastic Arts of the Kushans by John M. Rosenfield [https://books.google.com/books?id=udnBkQhzHH4C&pg=PR9 p. 9]</ref>

[[File:Bodh Gaya quadriga relief of Surya and Classical example Phoebus Apollo on quadriga.jpg|thumb|400px|Comparison of [[Bodh Gaya]] [[quadriga]] relief of [[Surya]] (left) and Classical example of [[Apollo|Phoebus Apollo]] on quadriga (right).]]
A famous relief from [[Bodh Gaya]] showing the Indian god [[Surya]] on a [[quadriga]] is also often mentioned as a possible example of Hellenistic influence on Indian art.<ref>[[:File:Bodh Gaya quadriga relief.jpg]]</ref><ref name="Penrose"/> The Surya depiction is indeed very similar to some Greek reliefs of [[Apollo]] on his quadriga horse chariot. Other authors point to the influence of [[Greco-Bactrian]] coinage in which similar quadriga scenes sometimes appear, as on the coinage of [[Plato of Bactria]].<ref name="Penrose">Postcolonial Amazons: Female Masculinity and Courage in Ancient Greek and Sanskrit Literature, by Penrose Jr., Oxford University Press, 2016 [https://books.google.com/books?id=4cFjDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT304 p. 304]</ref>

<gallery>
File:Yaksha Parkham Mathura with detail.jpg|[[Manibhadra|Yaksha Manibhadra]], Parkham near [[Mathura]] with detail of the dress with geometric fold of the hem.
File:KITLV 87971 - Unknown - Sculpture of a woman at Mathura in British India - 1897.tif|Sculpture of woman from ancient Braj-Mathura c. 2nd century CE.
</gallery>

===First visual representations of Indian deities===
{{Main|Post-Mauryan coinage of Gandhara}}
[[File:Coin of the Bactrian King Agathokles.jpg|thumb|Coin of Greco-Bactrian king [[Agathocles of Bactria|Agathocles]] with [[Hindu]] deities: [[Vasudeva]]–[[Krishna]] and [[Balarama]]–[[Samkarshana]].]]
[[File:AgathoklesCoinage.jpg|thumb|left|Indian coinage of [[Agathocles of Bactria|Agathocles]], with Buddhist lion and dancing woman holding lotus, possible Indian goddess [[Lakshmi]], a Goddess of abundance and fortune for Buddhists.]]
One of the last Greco-Bactrian kings, [[Agathocles of Bactria]] (r. 190–180 BCE), issued remarkable Indian-standard square coins bearing the first known representations of Indian deities, which have been variously interpreted as [[Vishnu]], [[Shiva]], [[Vasudeva]], [[Buddha]] or [[Balarama]]. Altogether, six such Indian-standard silver [[Greek drachma|drachmas]] in the name of Agathocles were discovered at Ai-Khanoum in 1970.<ref>Alexander the Great and Bactria: The Formation of a Greek Frontier in Central Asia, Frank Lee Holt, Brill Archive, 1988, p. 2 [https://books.google.com/books?id=VSA4AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA2]</ref><ref>Iconography of Balarāma, Nilakanth Purushottam Joshi, Abhinav Publications, 1979, p. 22 [https://books.google.com/books?id=5vd-lKzyFg0C&pg=PA22]</ref><ref name="books.google.com">''The Hellenistic World: Using Coins as Sources'', Peter Thonemann, Cambridge University Press, 2016, p. 101 [https://books.google.com/books?id=kMLrCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA101]</ref> Some other coins by Agathocles are also thought to represent the [[Buddhist]] lion and the Indian goddess [[Lakshmi]].<ref name="books.google.com"/> The Indian coinage of Agathocles is few but spectacular. These coins at least demonstrate the readiness of Greek kings to represent deities of foreign origin. The dedication of a Greek envoy to the cult of [[Garuda]] at the [[Heliodorus pillar]] in [[Besnagar]] could also be indicative of some level of religious [[syncretism]].

{{clear}}

==Direct influence in Northwestern India (180 BCE – 20 CE)==
The [[Indo-Greek|Indo-Greek period]] (180 BCE – 20 CE) marks a time when Bactrian Greeks established themselves directly in the northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent following the fall of the [[Maurya Empire]] and its takeover by the [[Sunga]].

===Religious buildings===
[[File:ButkaraStupa.jpg|thumb|The [[Butkara stupa]] was reinforced and decorated from the Indo-Greek period on.]]
Indo-Greek territories seems to have been highly involved with Buddhist. Numerous [[stupa]]s, which had been set up during the time of [[Ashoka]], were then reinforced and embellished during the Indo-Greek period, using elements of Hellenistic sculpture. A detailed archaeological analysis was made especially at the [[Butkara stupa]] which allowed to define precisely what had been made during the Indo-Greek period, and what came later. The Indo-Greeks are known for the additions and niches, stairs and balustrades in Hellenistic architectural style. These efforts would then continue during the [[Indo-Scythian]] and [[Kushan]] periods.<ref>"De l'Indus a l'Oxus: archaeologie de l'Asie Centrale", Pierfrancesco Callieri, p. 212: "The diffusion, from the second century BCE, of Hellenistic influences in the architecture of Swat is also attested by the archaeological searches at the sanctuary of Butkara I, which saw its stupa "monumentalized" at that exact time by basal elements and decorative alcoves derived from Hellenistic architecture".</ref>

===Greeks in Indian stone reliefs===
{{See also|Indo-Greek art}}
Numerous depictions of Greeks are known from the area of [[Gandhara]]. The [[Buner reliefs]] in particular have some of the clearest depictions of revelers and devotees in Greek attire.<ref>[https://www.flickr.com/photos/dandiffendale/23886347176 Cleveland Museum Buner relief collection]</ref>

[[File:Foreigners at Sanchi Stupa I North Gateway.jpg|thumb|Foreign devotees and musicians on the Northern Gateway of Stupa I, [[Sanchi]].]]
Buddhist monuments in the heartland of India also have such depictions. Some of the friezes of [[Sanchi]] show devotees in Greek attire. The men are depicted with short curly hair, often held together with a [[headband]] of the type commonly seen on [[Greek coins]]. The clothing too is Greek, complete with [[tunic]]s, capes and sandals, typical of the [[:File:Greek_travelling_costume.jpg|Greek travelling costume]]. The musical instruments are also quite characteristic, such as the double flute called [[aulos]]. Also visible are [[carnyx]]-like [[Cornu (horn)|horns]]. They are all celebrating at the entrance of the stupa. These men would be foreigners from north-west India visiting the Stupa, possibly [[Malla (India)|Mallas]], [[Indo-Scythians|Sakas]] or [[Indo-Greeks]] .<ref>"A guide to Sanchi" John Marshall. These "Greek-looking foreigners" are also described in Susan Huntington, "The art of ancient India", p. 100</ref>

Three inscriptions are known from [[Yavana]] donors at Sanchi, the clearest of which reads "''Setapathiyasa Yonasa danam''" ("Gift of the [[Yona]] of Setapatha"), Setapatha being an uncertain city.<ref>The Idea of Ancient India: Essays on Religion, Politics, and Archaeology, [[Sage Publications]] India, Upinder Singh, 2016 [https://books.google.com/books?id=KIWTCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA18 p. 18]</ref>

Another rather similar foreigner is also depicted in [[Bharhut]], the [[:File:Bharhut Stupa Yavana.jpg|Bharhut Yavana]], also wearing a tunic and a royal headband in the manner of a Greek king, and displaying a Buddhist [[triratna]] on his sword.<ref>Faces of Power: Alexander's Image and Hellenistic Politics by Andrew Stewart [https://books.google.com/books?id=1SUw29Q_SeMC&pg=PA180 p. 180]</ref><ref>"The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity, John Boardman, 1993, p. 112</ref>

<gallery>
File:GandharaDonorFrieze2.JPG|Greeks celebrating, [[Buner reliefs|Buner relief]], [[Victoria and Albert Museum]].
File:IndoGreeksTrojanHorse.jpg|The story of the [[Trojan horse]] in the art of [[Gandhara]]. [[British Museum]].
File:Indo-GreekBanquet.JPG|Greek clothes, [[amphora]]s, wine and music (Detail of [[Chakhil-i-Ghoundi stupa]], [[Hadda, Afghanistan|Hadda]].
File:Torana of Stupa 3 in Sanchi Foreign riders.jpg|Foreign horse riders, Southern Gateway of Stupa 3, [[Sanchi]].
File:Torana of Stupa 3 in Sanchi Foreigner fighting a Makara.jpg|Foreigner fighting a Makara, Southern Gateway of Stupa 3, Sanchi.
File:Bharhut Stupa Yavana.jpg|The Yavana at the [[Bharhut]] Stupa.
</gallery>

===Depiction of the Buddha in human form===
{{main|Greco-Buddhist art}}
[[File:Gandhara Buddha (tnm).jpeg|thumb|left|[[Gautama Buddha]] in Greco-Buddhist style, 1st–2nd centuries CE, [[Gandhara]] (modern eastern Afghanistan).]]
Numerous Greek artifacts were found in the city of [[Sirkap]], near [[Taxila]] in modern Pakistan and in [[Sagala]], a city in modern Pakistan 10 km from the border with India. Sirkap was founded as a capital of the Indo-Greek Kingdom and was laid-out on the Greek [[Hippodamian]] city plan; Sagala was also an Indo-Greek capital. Individuals in Greek dress an be identified on numerous friezes.

Although there is still some debate, the first [[Anthropomorphism|anthropomorphic]] representations of the Buddha himself are often considered a result of the Greco-Buddhist interaction. Before this innovation, [[Aniconism in Buddhism|Buddhist art was aniconic]], or very largely so: the Buddha was only represented through his symbols (an [[Hetoimasia#The empty throne in pre-Christian art|empty throne]], the [[Bodhi Tree]], [[Buddha footprint]]s, the [[Dharmachakra]]).<ref>South Asian Buddhism: A Survey, Stephen C. Berkwitz
Routledge, 2012, p. 29 et sig. [https://books.google.com/books?id=3TPgCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA29]</ref>

Probably not feeling bound by these restrictions, and because of "their cult of form, the Greeks were the first to attempt a sculptural representation of the Buddha".<ref>Linssen, "[[Zen]] Living"</ref> In many parts of the Ancient World, the Greeks did develop [[syncretic]] divinities, that could become a common religious focus for populations with different traditions: a well-known example is [[Serapis]], introduced by [[Ptolemy I Soter]] in [[Egypt]], who combined aspects of Greek and Egyptian Gods. In India as well, it was only natural for the Greeks to create a single common divinity by combining the image of a Greek [[god-king]] ([[Apollo]], with the traditional [[physical characteristics of the Buddha]]).

Some authors have argued that the Greek sculptural treatment of the dress has been adopted for the Buddha and [[Bodhisattva]]s throughout India. It is, even today, a hallmark of numerous Buddhist sculptures as far as China and Japan.<ref name="John Boardman 1993, p.112"/>

===Coinage===
{{main|Coinage of India}}
[[File:Coin of Kanishka I.jpg|thumb|Gold coin of [[Kanishka]], with a depiction of the [[Buddha]], with the legend "Boddo" in Greek script;[[Ahin Posh]].]]
Indo-Greek coinage is rich and varied, and contains some of the best coins of antiquity. Its influence on Indian coinage was far-reaching.<ref name="Sagar"/> The Greek script became used extensively on coins for many centuries, as was the habit of depicting a ruler on the obverse, often in profile, and deities on the reverse. The [[Western Satrap]], a western dynasty of foreign origin adopted Indo-Greek designs. The [[Kushans]] (1st–4th centuries CE) used the Greek script and Greek deities on their coinage. Even as late as the [[Gupta Empire]] (4th-6th centuries CE), [[Kumaragupta I]] issued coins with an imitation of Greek script.<ref name="Sagar">Foreign Influence on Ancient India, Krishna Chandra Sagar, Northern Book Centre, 1992 [https://books.google.com/books?id=0UA4rkm9MgkC&pg=PA102]</ref>
<gallery>
File:Coin of Dharaghosha king of the Audumbaras.jpg|Coin of the [[Audumbaras]] influenced by Indo-Greek coin styles. 2nd century BCE
File:KunindaCoin.JPG|Coin of the [[Kunindas]] influenced by Indo-Greek coin styles. 2nd century BCE
File:Silver Coin of Chandragupta II.jpg|Coin of [[Gupta dynasty|Gupta]] [[Chandragupta II]] with pseudo-Greek legend in the obverse. 4th century CE
</gallery>

==Greco-Buddhist artistic legacy (1st century BCE – 4th century CE)==
{{main|Greco-Buddhist art}}
<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
Buddha-Vajrapani-Herakles.JPG|[[Heracles]] depiction of [[Vajrapani]] as the protector of the Buddha, 2nd century [[Gandhara]], [[British Museum]].
A picture Texila by Usman Ghani.jpg|Hellenistic temple with [[Ionic order|Ionic]] columns at [[Jandial]], [[Taxila]].
Sanchi_temple_17.jpg|A [[tetrastyle]] [[prostyle]] early [[Gupta period]] temple of almost [[Classical architecture|Classical]] appearance at [[Sanchi]], an example of [[Buddhist architecture]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=CyLiDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT283 2500 Years of Buddhism by P.V. Bapat, p. 283]</ref>
</gallery>
The full bloom of [[Greco-Buddhist art]] seems to have postdated the Indo-Greek Kingdom, although it has been suggested that individual Greek artisans and artist probably continued to work for the new masters. It is apparently during the rule of the [[Indo-Scythian]], the [[Indo-Parthian]] and [[Kushan]] that Greco-Buddhist art evolved to become a dominant art form in the northwest of the Indian Subcontinent. Whereas other areas of India, especially the area of [[Mathura]] received the influence of the Greco-Buddhist school remains a matter of debate.

== Criticism==
[[File:Harappa male torso.jpg|thumb|Bronze Age artifact of Red Jasper torso despite being excavated by from [[Indus Valley Civilisation|Harappan]] mound was assigned to historic [[Gupta Empire|Gupta period]] by archaeologist John Marshal because of its [[Ancient Greek art|classical]] Greek art appearance.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Mohenjo-daro and the Indus Civilization|last=Marshall|first=John|pages=46}}</ref>]]
Many Indian scholars have argued that the notion of Greco-Buddhism, originated by European scholars, goes too far towards relocating Gandharan art as close to Greek and sometimes [[Persian art]] and defining ancient Indian art in terms of classical [[Greco-Roman antiquity|Greco Roman]] art itself. The archaeologist [[John Marshall (archaeologist)|John Marshall]] on his visit to [[Taxila]] and Gandhara was reported stating, 'it seemed as I had lighted on a bit of Greece itself' and I felt then there was something appealingly Greek in the countryside itself'<ref>Marshal (1951)</ref> Pierre Dupont thought of his trip to Pakistan in 1954 as 'a pious trip to the Greco-Buddhist country'. [[Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner|G. W. Leitner]] coined the term 'Greco-Buddhist' for pieces of Gandharan art which had reached Europe in 1870 and hailed them as a new page in the history of 'Greek Art' instead of 'Indian Art'.<ref>Abe (1995)</ref>

John Marshall, writing on the 'Primitive religion of the Eastern Indians and their art' declared that during the [[Ashoka|Ashokan]] period, the religion of [[East India|Eastern India]] asserted its indigenous character through a veneer of Perso-Hellenistic polish and finish and that, [[Magadha|Magadhan]] artists would receive their initial training under foreign masters from the Ashokan school. Stressing on the Persian influences on Mauryan sculpture John Marshall commented on how the upper portion of the [[yaksha]] statue displayed a Perso- Median influence in its drapery and style while the stiffness of the lower half exemplified the indigenous Indian art existing side by side with advanced exotic Perso-Hellenistic art<ref>{{Cite book|title=Memoirs of the archaeological survey of India no.30|last=Chandra|first=Ramaprasad|publisher=Archeological Survey of India|year=1927|pages=35}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Collier|first=Simon|title=The Origin of the Buddha Image: Gandhara and Colonialism vs. Mathura and Anti-colonialism?|url=https://www.academia.edu/25319826/The_Origin_of_the_Buddha_Image_Gandhara_and_Colonialism_vs._Mathura_and_Anti-colonialism|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Falser|first=Michael|title=The Graeco-Buddhist style of Gandhara – a ‘Storia ideologica’, or: how a discourse makes a global history of art|url=http://www.asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de/fileadmin/Documents/Falser__2015__Gandhara__Journal_of_Art_Historiography_.pdf|journal=Journal of Art Historiography|volume=13}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*"Boardman"= [[John Boardman (art historian)|Boardman, John]] (1998), "The Origins of Indian Stone Architecture", ''Bulletin of the Asia Institute'', 1998, New Series, Vol. 12, (''Alexander's Legacy in the East: Studies in Honor of Paul Bernard''), pp. 13–22, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/24049089 JSTOR]
{{Gandhara |state=expanded}}
[[Category:Ancient Greek art]]
[[Category:Indian art]]
[[Category:Hellenistic civilization]]
[[Category:Indo-Greeks]]
[[Category:Indian Buddhist sculpture]]

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Hellenistic influence on Indian art