The earliest known stone sculpture of Assam belongs to the Gupta period, the best evidence of which is to be found in the Ganga and Yamuna images on the temple door-frame (5th/6th century A.D) at Da-Parbatiya, Tezpur.
Of the late Gupta sculptures, there are two Vishnu images at the State Museum, Guwahati. A few more such images exist elsewhere in Assam. Another good example of the period is the Hari-Hara panel. During this period local styles developed at places like Deopani, Numaligarh and Sibsagar district, which, however, did not continue for long. The best examples of these styles are one of the Vishnu images mentioned above, and a panel of heads(10th/11th century A.D) from Numaligarh now kept in the State Museum.
Examples of sculpture of the Pala and Sena style are are found in practically every nook and corner of the state, mostly in temples and Namghara (Vaisnavite prayer hall).
Sculpture traditions received a set back from 13th century onwards due to several reasons, although, the tradition did not completely die out. Local schools with the help of local expertise grew up in the 16th century which continued down to the 18th century. Sculptures of this period are primitive in character, jejune in style, lacking in perspective and can be more aptly called folk-art.
We also come across examples of metallic sculptures of the 9th/10th century. Some of which can be seen in the state Museum. Metallic arts continued down to the 18th century, and images of Sadasiva, Vishnu, Mahaisamardini, Krisna etc. are to be found everywhere in the state.
Assam, like the best of India, had its cultural roots in the Old Stone Age going back in time to more than half-a-million years. It also passed through the Late Stone Age and New Stone Age(Neolithic), but it did not witness the emergence of Bronze Age comparable to the Indus Valley Civilization of the third millennium B.C. No pre-historic rock cut cave painting as reported from some regions is noticed in Assam, nay in the North East India. In ancient period, Assam was known as Pragjyotisa and it is mentioned in the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Later on Assam came to be known as Kamrupa, of which Pragjyotishpura, present Guwahati, was the capital. In the late medieval period, Kamarupa came to be known as Assam, which included the entire North-East.
The art of stone sculpture in Assam was, however, still later not earlier than the 1st century B.C. or even 1st century A.D. when at a place called Sri Surya Pahar some votive stupas, i.e. small sized stupas in round were carved out of solid rocks. We have no evidence of Mauryan (3rd century B.C.) works of art in this part of the country so far. The Bhaitbal remains, the remains of a Buddhist stupa dated back to 200 or 300 B.C.- this claim made by some scholars, however, is yet to be conclusively proved. But it is proved that western Assam witnessed Buddhist settlement in the past.
The first and the most impressive example of monumental art in stone in Assam is located at Daparvatia near Tezpur. It has come down to us as relics on the door frame (Dvara) of a temple, now otherwise completely in ruins. It is dated to the 5th-6th century A.D. on the basis of the style of the figures, which share all the characteristic features of the Classical Art of the Gupta period. It is generally related to the late mature phase of Sarnath School of Indian Art. This piece of splendid work of art with great details and the elegant figures of Ganga and Yamuna must have been imported from Ganga Valley. This type of high class ornate door-way of a temple depicting Ganga and Yamuna is not seen anywhere in the country.
The two uprights or door-jambs (sakhas) of the gate-way bear at their bottom two most elegant female figures viz., Ganga and Yamuna; the former stands on crocodile (makara) while the later stands on tortoise (Kachchhapa). The crocodile is, however, sadly mutilated and missing. The hip of each of the river goddesses swings slightly backward while the torso takes of gentle turn forward like the famous terracotta Ganga and Yamuna figures from Ahichchhatra, now in the National Museum, New Delhi. These extremely delicate figures with garlands held lightly and gracefully in hands are juxtaposed by two flying geese or hamsas. The scene is rightly considered the most lyrical poetry written on stone. It is possible that it was carved somewhere in the Ganga basin and brought here with great care and affection by some devotee. We have compared this beautiful 'dvara' depicting the river goddesses with all the available temple 'dvara' of Gupta period, but it is found to be the best of all. In the same site a few terracotta figurines were discovered while clearing jungles. They may also be datable to the same period. A few years back a few more terracotta plaques depicting animals and human figures were discovered in the same village, which may date in a slightly later period. Two pieces are in the Assam State Museum. Others are in the site and are worshiped.
The stone sculptures of the same period as Da-Paravatia but carved locally include such fine images as Parvati in pancha tapas form. Similarly, there is an image of Daksa from Rangagora T.E. near Tinsukia. Both these images go a long way to show that some local efforts were also made to adopt classical Indian idiom in Assam. The eyes of Parvati are indeed typically classical and so also the matted locks of hair (jata). The figures of Daksha, though do not have jata- it has other phenomenon of the classical style. Both the images are housed in the State Museum, Guwahati. It shows how the Gupta style traveled to the eastern most border of the country. The female bust from Davaka identified as Dovaka of the Allahabad Pillar inscription of Samudragupta also bear the characteristic feature of the Da-Parvatia figures of two river goddesses. The piece is preserved in the Assam State Museum now but is sadly mutilated.
From the 7th through the 9th century A.D. Assam witnessed, as in contemporary Bengal, a sculptural style which continued the Gupta classical tradition but greatly influenced by idioms and tribal motifs. The Pala School of Eastern India, however, inspired the local Assamese tradition with still greater force. It is clear in the stone images from Golaghat, Deopani and Barpathar regions of Assam. These great works of art include inscribed images, one of Vishnu, two of Harihara and a torso of Vishnu. Interestingly enough, these sculptures were carved from large sized riverborne smooth boulders. The figures moreover have no halo or sirachakra. In other words, the sculptural art of Assam till the 9th century was simple and direct, somewhat earth-bound and hesitant and it was hardly done on a large scale. The Sri Surya Pahar rock-cut icons also prove it. They are simple in execution.
The 10th century was a landmark in the history of the art of Assam. Assam now adopted stone stele or Silapatta already popular in Bengal and Bihar for high relief carvings of gods and goddesses. It was usually a rectangular tablet of stone, anywhere from 2.5 cm to 7 cm or more in thickness cut to the desired size in terms of length and breath. It was generally tapering at the top, sometimes like an ogee arch with pointed top. The stone selected was generally granite; sandstone was rarely used. The figures in a number of examples were highly animated, refined and ornamented sharing many characteristic features of Pala style of Bihar and Bengal. These Pala rulers had no relation with the Pala rulers of ancient Assam i.e. Kamarupa.
By the 11th-12th century the high relief stele art of Assam developed its own characteristic features. The stele became very pointed. Below the point Kirtimukha is sculptured flanked by two Vidyadhara figures each holding a floral garland. These figures are beautifully decorated. Below the figure of Kiritimukh, the figure of the deity was sculptured in a majestic way. The entire stele became a place for decoration. The human figures became markedly cylindrical. These were clad in diaphanous costumes. The jewellery was minutely carved. This triangular top of the otherwise rectangular stele was now filled with decorative designs (metrical style), one half duplicating the other half. Now basalt was much more commonly used. Basalt stone by this time became very popular amongst the artisans in Bengal and Bihar. This material was not locally available in Assam. So, it was imported, possibly, from Rajmahal hill; Bengal artists also used the same source. It must be very clear that by 12th century A.D., as in Bihar and Bengal, in Assam also the sculptural art reached its zenith. The river Brahmaputra played an important role through which ideas of art comes to the Assam Valley.
Tai-Ahom Influence
1228 A.D. was yet another landmark in the history of Brahmaputra Valley. For the first time an alien people, the Tais of Upper Burma, captured the political power. These rulers are known as Ahoms. Busy as they were in political activities, for quite sometime they did not pay any attention to art and craft. Thus, the older tradition only managed to exist in isolated pockets. The loss of royal patronage and consequent public support of sufficient magnitude brought about marked degeneration in the art of Assam. The stone sculptures from Ambari in Guwahati such as the four-armed image of Surya and the two-armed of Vishnu bear testimony to this last observation. The majority of the stone sculptures discovered in the Ambari excavation in the heart of Guwahati city are in the Assam State Museum and they bear the characteristic features of the pre-Ahom i.e., Pala style of Assam in decaying form, but certainly not in Ahom style. These sculptures statigraphically and paleaographically belong to the 13th-14th century. The famous Nataraja, a splendid work of stone art, also bear some degenerated elements in its pre-Ahom style. In case of terracotta sculpture from the site, however, one does not notice decadence in style. We must remember that the stone artists of 10th-12th century were followed by the metal and terracotta art in Assam which reached its zenith by 12th century A.D. The figures became cylindrical and the stele became decorative. The terracotta art of 11th-12th century from Assam can not be taken as folk art, as they bear classical style. The metal image of Indra from Kahilipara preserved in the Assam State Museum and three terracotta plagues showing the figures of Bhringi, a dancing figure and an aristocratic lady are examples of high class art.
By the 17th century, however, we find a revival in the sculptural art of Assam. Now the rulers also extended their support to temple building activities. Some temples which were destroyed in the earthquakes and other natural calamities were rebuilt. Their walls were decorated with sculptured images. Some of the images appear to be those which were recovered form the debris of the fallen earlier temples. Hence, although, these temples belong to the times of Ahom and Koch rulers all the images were not contemporary with the newly built temples on the old temple sites; quite a few of them were often pre-Ahom period. In other words, the temples from 17th century have yielded sculptures of the pre-17th century periods characterized by local Ahom style. The latter, mostly Brahmanical deities done by the Ahom-Koch artists who were perhaps not well-versed in the classical Sanskrit tradition of the Palas. Hence, these works of art are found highly impregnated with folk elements. Some attempts were made to imitate the classical style but these were, by and large, unsuccessful.
The Ahom who came to the Brahmaputra valley from upper Burma had their religion, language and script. Slowly they started accepting the existing Hindu religion and learning Sanskrit language and Indian mythology. Ahom artists ignorant of Hindu iconography inevitably committed some mistakes in producing the figures of Hindu divinity but nevertheless left the marks of their artistic ingenuity.
To give a few examples of such cases, we might cite the temple near Kuwarital. There is an image of Vishnu carved in imitation of Pala sculptures but it lacked their proportion of limbs, balance of structure and rhythm of lines even though it has a handsome kirtimukha at the top and a stele. However, it is not subdued by folk elements unlike other Ahom sculptures on temple walls.
At Sukresvara in Guwahati there is a Janardan temple. Here too, there is an image of Vishnu in seated posture. In this also one can see the unsuccessful attempt of the carvers at imitating the Pala figures. The stone sculptures of the Ahom style have, however, been characterized by peculiar sitting postures of the deities while riding an elephant or a horse. Incidentally, dance and other secular themes are only rarely depicted in the Ahom sculptures. This style influenced by folk elements was followed by the koch and kochari artisans in their art works.
Metal, Bronze and Brass Sculptures
The history of sculpture in metal, bronze and brass is, however, much younger than the history of stone sculpture in Assam. The earliest images are datable only to the 9th-10th century A.D. They , like the stone sculptures, display the Pala characteristics— sharp nose, short but prominent eyes, terse sitting or standing posture, formal attitude, quite a few ornaments, closely fitting dhoti with folds indicated by single or double lines, iconographic details, etc. In fact, many of them may have been cast in Bengal or Bihar and then brought to Assam for worship in temples, both public and private. These are sometimes found in hoards buried at different places in the Brahmaputra valley. Two such hoards were located at Narakasur(Kahilipara) and Hahara; their finds are preserved in the Assam State museum, Guwahati. The Kahilipara hoard is very important. The image of Indra of this group is one of the excellent arts of the country. The sculpture of Devi (Mahisasurmardini) depicted in a round madellion is indeed unique. Because of its rarity it was taken to exhibit in the USA in connection with festival of India and its photograph was published in the front page of the catalogue. These are products of the artists of 10th-12th century.
During the late Ahom-Koch period a large number of metallic images and ritualistic vessels, lamps etc. were made and most of them are found housed in the Satra or Vaishnava temple-complexes of the late Ahom-Koch period (17th-19th century). The Venugopal and Laruagopal images became very popular in the Vastra Satras of Assam by 18th-19th century.
Wood Sculptures
Sculpture in wood appears to have been much more popular in Assam than in stone and in metal. There were two very important reasons for this: the country has always been very rich in timber and timber has been most commonly used as medium of architecture, both private and public. To decorate different members of wooden framework, posts, lintels, and door-frames has been an age-old practice all over Assam. Existing Satra-complexes and temple establishments furnish the best testimony of this. Still, it is true that because of the heavy rains and humidity old woodwork has only rarely survived. In the Bardowa museum there is a beautiful image of Vishu on a wooden stele displaying pala features.
It appears that, as far as the style in sculpture is concerned, the directional changes have been the same whatever the medium be. The museum has a good number of wood works. There are many Satras in Assam which are decorated with wood art. The Hati-Satra of Soalkuchi is ornamented with wood-art and Barpeta-Satra building is profusely decorated with wooden sculptures depicting various scenes of the Bhagavata.
Clay Sculptures: Terracotta
The clay was yet another medium in which works of art were produced. These were hand-modeled as well as cast. The ancient most of the 6th century A.D. in classical style is a terracotta seated male torso found at the ruined temple site of Da Parvatia near Tezpur as we have already mentioned above. A good number of terracotta plaques from Buddhist stupa and Hindu temple have now come to light. Nanath terracotta temples of central Assam, Suryapahar and Barbhita, and paglatek Stupa site of lower Assam are examples of 8th/9th terracotta art. Terracotta or burnt clay images of the 10th-12th century from the old sites of Guwahati, Bhaitabari and other places are discovered. The terracotta plaques in the Cotton College campus discovered some years back are similar to the ones already in Assam State Museum. They are strikingly similar to recently discovered terracotta plaques of Bhaithabari. All of them are the products of sophisticated idiom through which the terracotta art reached its zenith. The Guwahati, Bhaithbari, Surya Pahar, Paglatek and Barbhita are examples of sophisticated art form and not folk art works. These are all in high relief and display pre-Ahom styles of workmanship. However, the rerracottas of Ahom-Koch period, like the stone sculpture, clearly show the dominance of folk elements. The terracotta sculpture from Baghapara, now in the State Museum Guwahati, on the other hand, show a peculiar admixture of late Mughal and folk styles, a fact which reflects the life style of the people of 18th-19th century. The figures are in low relief, like the sculptures of the Ghanshyam Dol at Joysagar. This monument is brick built decorated lavishly with terracotta sculptures. It is in a state of decay as the brick temples at kamakhya with decoration of clay sculptures which is almost finished.
Summary
To sum up, the sculptural art of Assam had in the beginning only some pockets of classical idiom as represented at Surya Pahar and Da-Parvatia. It was only in 10th-12th century A.D. that Assam witnessed the birth of a mature phase of artistic activities though here too it was the style of Eastern India—Bihar and Bengal predominated. The Pala characteristics mark most of the works of art. The Ahom period, on the other hand, started with an extremely dull note but it gained momentum in the late phase of Ahom-Koch period with emphasis on folkish elements and folkish techniques. At some point of time, around the 18th century perhaps, late Mughal type infiltrated the life and art of the elite and the middle class as was also the case with Bengal where the Muslims ruled till the British took over the political power from them.
This great art heritage which stands as the sentinel of great Indian culture in the North-East should be given priority and attempts should be made to preserve, conserve and protect them for as already many of them have been lost for ever.
