The Stepwells Of Gujarat: In Art-Historical Perspective

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This monograph is a thorough scrutiny of the characteristic features, history, evolution, typology, style and iconography of stepwells of Gujarat, a unique form of underground water-architecture which survives in this region from the 7th century onwards.

After discussing the characteristic architectural features, the stepwells are studied in the background of not only Western Indian architecture and of water-monuments I general ,but also in view of silpa sastra, the traditional Sanskrit texts on architecture. Subsequently a historical chronology and the identification of architectural types have been established with the help of archaeological and literary sources as well as direct study of art-historical and architectural aspects of the stepwells. Finally the iconography of gods and goddesses peculiar to water-monuments and the ritual implication have been discussed. The book is invaluable, as it brings out for the first time hitherto unknown aspects of ancient Indian architecture with more than 300 illustration and large scale drawings of plans and sections of five most typical stepwells.

About the Author

Dr. Jutta Jain Neubauer was born in Austria in 1951. After spending initial 14 years in Indonesia and Afghanistan, she returned to West Germany in 1965. Later on took up studies in Indology and Indian Art History at the Universities of Marburg, Heidelberg and Bonn, to conclude her studies with a PhD degree in 1978. Between 1976 and 1978 she conducted prolonged field-work and research in Western India to study the history of architecture, especially the water-monuments, of Gujarat, sponsored by a scholarship from the Ministry of Education, Government of India, under the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

Dr. Jain-Neubauer is the author of Ramayana Miniatures in Pahari Painting and has published several research papers. She has also co-edited Rajput Art and Architecture along with Prof. Dr. Hermann Goetz. A present she is working on the painted bookcovers and manuscript illustrations at the L.D. Institute of Indology (Ahmedabad).