India: Ajanta Caves
The UNESCO-listed treasure of 30 massive ancient rock-hewn caves carved out and painted in the 2nd century – worth a flight to Aurangabad and a 3-hour brutally wrecked road to get here. The caves were continuously carved and decorated here with Buddhist religious sculptures and art from around 200AD to 650AD. The vertical flood basalt wall forms a crescent against the river bed and all the caves were dug out and decorated along the perimeter. Four of the caves have amazingly preserved wall and ceiling paintings that are over 1500 years old! Many caves have single Buddha and Buddha-like deities inside their dark interior with massive pillars throughout. Several other caves are actual monasteries with a central stupa and very rich and variant Buddhist reliefs and sculptures. You explore here, cave by cava, absolutely floored by what you are seeing in a deep disbelief that this is real. The scenes depicted on the walls and columns in most caves give more then a glimpse into what 2-5th century India was like. Interestingly, some paintings and carving also depict foreigners and merchants from Persia, Central Asia, Middle East, and even East Africa. Ajunta Caves definitely catapult into a top-5 attractions in India so far for me and an absolute must see!
