1862.] Ancient Javanese Remains. 25 



in plan, with porches on all four sides making it cruciform ; three of 

 these porches forming separate chapels, and the fourth, (that to the 

 east), an entrance. Mr. Oldham will remember that these words 

 describe many of the temples that we have explored together in 

 Burma, most accurately. The lower part, to a height of 7 or 8 feet, 

 was occupied by rich and bold base mouldings, much injured, and 

 above this was the level of the entrance, reached by steps. There 

 were no images remaining within, but on the northern and southern 

 sides were the remains of sculptured standing figures holding lotuses 

 apparently, and over the door of one side was a small figure of 

 Buddha. The exterior faces were adorned with highly decorated 

 niches, each surmounted by the grinning head so often spoken of, 

 and a canopy in relief representing an architectural facade. Above 

 this was a very heavy and rich double cornice in great dilapidation 

 the lower cornice supported by a frieze of little human figures, Atlas- 

 like, bearing it on their hands. The interior was a chamber of about 

 26 feet square roofed in by the usual false vault in the way shown in 

 the section ;'* there were here traces of a fine coat of plaster which 

 evidently had at one time covered the whole of the building, and 

 was found even on some of those points which were most richly 

 sculptured, such as the fine scroll work on the pilasters at the angles. 

 This is a very singular feature, and I have little doubt that it was 

 universal in these buildings. The use of lime is entirely rejected as 

 a cement in the joints of the building, but adopted as a coating to 

 the most elaborate surfaces of stone-work. Exactly the same was 

 the case at Pagan, only admirable brick-work was there substituted 

 for stone. If the object was the preservation of the building, it is 

 difficult to understand why the stones should not have been laid with 

 mortar. We know that even the sculptured cave-walls of Ellora 

 and Ajunta have been similarly coated with plaster, and that there 

 it was to give a ground for colouring. Probably the object here was 

 the same. 



* Fig. 12. There is, I find, a description of this temple, with a plan and sec- 

 tion iu Baffles, but no view. It is by Captain Gr. Baker whom Raffles employed to 

 draw and survey the remains, and I may mention that he seems to have accepted 

 all the ignorant talk of the sepoys who were with him as authoritative, and 

 consequently has misleading descriptions of the figures as representing Krishna, 

 Sita, &c. The figure which he calls Sita appears to be the small Buddha over 

 the door ; and the whole building appears to have been purely Buddhist. 



