Jandial near the city of Taxila in Pakistan is the site of an ancient temple well known for its Ionic columns. The temple is located 630 meters north of the northern gate of Sirkap."The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia to Bactria and India" Getzel M. Cohen, Univ of California Press, 2013, p.327 The Temple was excavated in 1912–1913 by the Archaeological Survey of India under John Marshall. It has been called the most Hellenic structure yet found on Pakistani soil."The Dynastic Arts of the Kushans", John M. Rosenfield, University of California Press, 1 janv. 1967 p.129
Temple structure The Temple is considered as a semi-Classical temple. Its design is essentially that of a Greek Temple, with a naos, pronaos and an opisthodomos at the back."The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia to Bactria and India" Getzel M. Cohen, Univ of California Press, 2013, p.327 Two Ionic columns at the front are framed by two anta walls as in a Greek distyle in antis layout. It seems that the temple had an outside wall with windows or doorways, in a layout similar to that of a Greek encircling row of columns (peripteral design).Rowland, p.492 The dimensions of the Temple were around 45 x 30 meters.
However, inside the Temple, between the naos and the opisthodomos, there is a heavy wall with stairs, which has led some authors to consider that it was designed to support a ziggurat as in a Zoroastrian or Magian temple."The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia to Bactria and India" Getzel M. Cohen, Univ of California Press, 2013, p.327 "The Grandeur of Gandhara: The Ancient Buddhist Civilization of the Swat, Peshawar, Kabul and Indus Valleys" Rafi U. Samad, Algora Publishing, 2011 p.62
Besides the Pataliputra capital (3rd century BCE), the Ionic style is a rare occurrence in the Indian subcontinent, and it almost disappeared afterwards, apart from a pillar in Ahin Posh, which seems to be more Parthian than truly Hellenistic."Papers on the Date of Kaniṣka" Arthur Llewellyn Basham, Brill Archive, 1969, p.23 Rowland, p.495 It seems to have disappeared with the weakening of direct Greek presence in India, to be exclusively replaced by the numerous instances of Corinthian art that can be found in the Indo-Corinthian capitals of Gandhara.Rowland, p.496
Construction
The Ionic capitals of the Jandial temple seem to be a rather provincial and dry version of the Ionic Temple of Artemis in Ephesus.Rowland, p.492 However the design of the bases is quite pure, as are the wall moldings. Also the drums are finely joined with dowels. All this suggests work which was done under Greek supervision, or maybe by Greeks directly.Rowland, p.493
Dating The Temple may have been built in the 2nd century BCE under the Greeks in India (Indo-Greeks)."The Grandeur of Gandhara: The Ancient Buddhist Civilization of the Swat, Peshawar, Kabul and Indus Valleys" Rafi U. Samad, Algora Publishing, 2011 p.62 The exact alignment of the Temple with Sirkap leads some authors to think that it may have been built during the main occupation period of the Greek city,"Papers on the Date of Kaniṣka" Arthur Llewellyn Basham, Brill Archive, 1969, p.23 and that it may have been the work of an architect from Asia Minor,"The Grandeur of Gandhara: The Ancient Buddhist Civilization of the Swat, Peshawar, Kabul and Indus Valleys" Rafi U. Samad, Algora Publishing, 2011 p.62 or from Greece or an architect trained in Greek techniques.Rowland, p.491
Alternatively, it may have been built under the Indo-Parthians in the 1st century BCE in order to practice the Zoroastrian faith, possibly right after their invasion of Hellenistic lands, using Greek manpower and expertise."The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia to Bactria and India" Getzel M. Cohen, Univ of California Press, 2013, p.327 Rowland, p.493 Alternatively, it may be the construction of a Greek devotee of Zoroastriasm, at it known that in India the Greeks easily followed other faith, as exemplified by the dedication to Garuda made by a Greek envoy on the Heliodorus pillar in Besnagar.Rowland, p.495
A coin of the Indo-Scythian ruler Azes I was found in the rubbles of the Temple, which may suggest that construction occurred during his reign.Rowland, 494
The Jandial Temple may have been the one visited by Apollonius of Tyana during his visit of the subcontinent in the 1st century CE.Rowland, p.494
Gallery
Jandial D On another mound (Mound D), a little to the west of Jandial, foundations of another temple (Jandial D) which may have been built in the 2nd century BCE under the Greeks as well, were excavated in 1863–64.Sir John Marshall: A Guide to Taxila, p.89. Cambridge 1960 The temple which has a plan very similar to Jandial had a large front porch measuring 58 feet. Between Jandial and Jandial D ran most probably the ancient high-road to Gandhara.Sir John Marshall: A Guide to Taxila, p.85. Cambridge 1960
Sources
External links Google Map images of the site
References