Stylistic Studies on the Wall Paintings of the Ajanta Caves

阿甘塔石窟壁画从创作时间上可分为早期壁画和晚期壁画。通过对它们与浮雕的各种形式的比较，可以清楚地看出，前者是在公元1世纪中叶萨塔瓦哈纳王朝统治下处决的。尽管他们早期的演奏风格和技巧相当成熟，但后者的风格种类繁多，从古典到中世纪不等。虽然可以确定它们是在公元5世纪中叶之后开始生产的，但它们被继续执行了多久还是个问题。一位美国学者热情地提出了一份阿金塔后来的壁画的不稳定的简短年表。而其他一些人愚蠢地接受了这一点。但这无疑是错误的，因为他们的风格太多样化了，不可能在短时间内完成。经过深思熟虑的风格研究，我们得出的结论是，阿金塔后来的大部分壁画最晚都是在公元6世纪中叶才产生的，首先是瓦卡塔卡人的统治，然后是当地统治者阿斯马卡的统治。其他一些描绘佛像或佛塔人物的奇特壁画，很可能是在公元7世纪上半叶卡拉库里王朝时期断断续续地附加到原始壁画上，以获得宗教价值。

The wall paintings in the Ajanta Caves can be classified into the early and the later ones in respect of their execution times. It has become clear that the former were executed in the middle of the 1st century A.D.under the rule of the Satavahana Dynasty, on the basis of comparison of various forms between them and relief sculptures. They show rather mature styles and techniques notwithstanding their early execution.The latter have large variety of styles, ranging from the classical to the mediaeval one. While it is certain that they began to be produced after the middle of the 5th century A.D., it is debatable how long they continued to be executed. An American scholar has zealously proposed a erratic short chronology of later wall paintings at Ajanta. and some others have stupidly accepted it. But it is undoubtedly wrong because their styles are too diverse to have been executed in a short period.As a result of the deliberate stylistic research, we have reached the conclusion that most of the Ajanta later wall paintings were produced until the middle of the 6th century A.D.at the latest, first under the Vakatakas and next under a local ruler of Asmaka. Some other peculiar murals depicting Buddha or stupa figures were probably appended to original ones for the sake of earning religious merits intermittently by the first half of 7th century A.D.under the Kalacuris.