75.Āyāka panel

  • 3rd–4th century
  • Phanigiri, Suryapet district, Telangana
  • Department of Heritage, Telangana, Hyderabad

This magnificent frieze likely adorned an offering platform (āyāka) on the Great Stūpa of Phanigiri monastery. It consists of seven narrative medallions separated by pilasters. Each episode comes from the Māndhāta-avadāna, a story about a virtuous king who becomes infatuated with his own powers and is cast down by the gods. The lower frieze depicts noble animals in motion: a buffalo, griffin, bull, hybrid creature, elephant, ram, lion, boar, and deer. The botanical motifs decorating the pilasters underscore the hybridity of Ikṣhvāku art of this time, combining Indian lotuses and Hellenistic acanthus leaves.