326 Essay on the Avian Order of Architecture. [Sept. 



Professor Willis admits the probability that the Kashmirian pediments 

 may have been borrowed from those of the Syrian Greeks, and he 

 founds his opinion upon the fact that the trefoiled arch of the Kash- 

 mirian temple rises high into the tympanum of the pediment ; a practice 

 which was not introduced into the classical architecture until after the 

 commencement of the Christian era. But the Professor had not I 

 believe, seen any examples of the older Kashmirian buildings, such as the 

 enclosing walls of the temple on the Takht-i-Suliman and of the tomb 

 of Zein-ul-ab-ud-din, as well as the perfect little cave temple of Bhau- 

 majo. Of these specimens the first dates as early as 220 B. C. at 

 which time the Kabul valley, and even the western Punjab, was occu- 

 pied by the Bactrian Greeks under Euthydemus and his son Demetrius. 

 If therefore it is admitted that the Kashmirian architects have been in- 

 debted to those of Greece for their pediments, for their fluted columns, 

 or even for any of their minor details, I think that they must certainly 

 have borrowed them from the temples of their immediate neighbours the 

 Bactrian Greeks, and not from the buildings of the distant Syrian Greeks. 

 I think also that had these pediments been imitated from the later 

 Romanized examples, the copyists would scarcely have overlooked the 

 structural arches which occupy their pediments. In fact the forms of 

 the principal Kashmirian mouldings, which are all quirked ovolos, or 

 echini, could only have been borrowed from the pure Greek style of an 

 earlier period than the Roman innovation of circular segmental 

 mouldings. 



3. — Another striking resemblance between the Kashmirian architec- 

 ture and that of the various Grecian orders is its stereotyped style, which 

 during the long flourishing period of several centuries remained unchang- 

 ed. In this respect it is so widely different from the ever- varying forms 

 and plastic vagaries of the Hindu architecture that it is impossible to 

 c onceive their evolution from a common origin. I feel convinced my- 

 self that several of the Kashmirian forms and many of the details, were 

 borrowed from the temples of the Kabulian Greeks, while the arrange- 

 ment of the interior and the relative proportions of the different parts 

 were of Hindu origin. Such in fact must necessarily have been the 

 case with imitations by Indian workmen, which would naturally have 

 been engrafted upon the indigenous architecture. The general arrange- 

 ment would therefore still remain Indian, while many of the details, 

 and even some of the larger forms might be of foreign origin. 



