Ancient Buddhist caves under threat

The Archaeological Survey of India has been struggling to control water damage to ancient Buddhist paintings in the Ajanta Caves in the state of Maharashtra.

The 29 caves in this UNESCO World Heritage Site are decorated with sculptures and paintings dating back as far as the second century B.C. They depict Buddhist tales and images of the Buddha and various Bodhisattvas.

The addition of new drainage systems has stopped some of the leakage of water through tiny cracks in the stone, but recent heavy rains have made the caves develop new leaks.

Archaeological Survey officials are monitoring the situation and trying to decide what to do next. Memories of a another Buddhist cave complex, the Bagh Caves, is making them tread lightly. Bad conservation methods at that site led to their almost complete destruction by seepage in the 1950s and 60s.

India is putting new emphasis on conservation as it tries to add more sites to the World Heritage List. Hopefully the folks at the Archaeological Survey of India will win the battle to preserve India's heritage. I met some of their archaeologists the last couple of times I went to India and they're a dedicated bunch, despite having to struggle with bureaucracy, insufficient funds, and the sheer vastness of their task.

Filed under: Arts and Culture, History, Learning, Asia, India