Page:History of Indian and Eastern Architecture Vol 1.djvu/169

 CHAP. V. WESTERN CHAITYA HALLS. 135 small repetitions of it, not only here but in all these caves, shows not only its form, but how universal its employment was. The rafters of the roof were of wood, and many of them, as may be seen in the woodcut, remain to the present day. Everything, fact, that could be made in wood remained in wood, and in only the constructive parts necessary for stability were executed in the rock. 60. Fa9ade of the Cave at (From a Photograph. It is easy to understand that, the first time men undertook to repeat in stone forms they had only been accustomed to erect in wood, they should have done so literally. The sloping inwards of the pillars was requisite to resist the thrust of the circular roof in the wooden building, but it must have appeared so awkward in stone that it would hardly be often repeated. As, however, it was probably almost universal in structural buildings, the doorways and openings naturally followed the same lines, hence the sloping jambs. Though these were by