ESSAY ON THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE HINDUS

About the Book:-The introduction to the European public of this rare and valuable book by a Hindu would seem to mark an epoch not only in the history of the science but also in that of the Hindus themselves. Their palaces, their temples, the stupendous pyramidal gateways leading to the latter, the colonnades and porticoes with which they are surrounded; some of “a thousand pillars,” others equally remarkable for their elevations, richness, and grandeur of design, have for ages been the objects of admiration to the traveller in the East; and, though it had long been known, proverbially, that the Hindus possessed treatises on architecture of a very ancient date, prescribing the rules by which these edifices were constructed, it remained for the author of this essay to overcome the many, and almost insurmountable obstacles to the substantiation of the fact, and to the communication of it to the European world in a well-known language of Europe. As of most other sciences among the Hindus, the rules and precepts of architecture and sculpture had been, with some solitary exceptions, locked up in the Sanscrit language; and, as the study of this language was limited, in general, to the higher classes; the only means of improvement left to the artist, who in all cases would be of a subordinate class, were the verbal instructions delivered to him by these superiors, when they might happen to require his assistance; together with the impress on his mind resulting from practical experience. The author compares Hindu architecture with the Greek, Egyptian, or later European architecture that is helpful in understanding sources of design, particularly of temple architecture. Forty-eight plates illustrate the different parts of the temple, and show in detail the decorative and iconographic ornament. About the Author:-Ram Raz was born in Tanjore in 1790. He proudly traced his lineage to the kings of the great Vijaya Nagar Empire. His family was, however, very poor. We know very little of his schooling. He seems to have acquired some knowledge of English somewhere along the way as he grew up. He was completely a self-taught and self-made man. He started his career as a clerk to the adjutant in one of the native Army Regiments of the infantry in the Carnatic. Later, he was promoted to the position of Vakil to the Second Battalion of the XVI Regiment of the Madras Native Infantry. During these years, he seems to have polished his linguistic abilities in English and several South Indian languages. This made him a skilled interpreter. The Title 'ESSAY ON THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE HINDUS written/authored/edited by RAM RAZ', published in the year 2021. The ISBN 9788121225533 is assigned to the Paperback version of this title. This book has total of pp. 179 (Pages). The publisher of this title is Gyan Publishing House. This Book is in ENGLISH. The subject of this book is . Size of the book is 13.34 x 21.59 cms Vol:-