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Journalism of Courage
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has been criticised for neglect of monuments around the country, which probably are the most numerous in the world as well as some of the most magnificent. Many of these mistakes are those of omission but also, on occasion, those of commission. The renowned cave paintings of Ajanta are a classic case in point. These are arguably the depictions which best capture the so-called Golden Age of India – more than any from the Gupta dynasty.
Experts led by Dr Walter Spink, the art historian from the University of Michigan and foremost ‘Ajantologist’ who has spent 40 years studying this one monument, has been arguing that by "cleaning" the paintings on the walls to rid them of the soot accumulated 1,500 years ago when Buddhist monks worshipped at the site, the ASI has been defacing them. It is true that the once-obscured paintings have been brought to public view, but their sensuous contours have all but vanished in the process. Dr Spink has suggested that the ASI should stop till it acquires the know-how to remove the accretions without damaging what lies beneath them. Many paintings have survived the wear and tear of nature – especially during the monsoons – and it would be tragic if their degradation was hastened by official diktat.µThis is by no means the first time that well-meaning officials have unintentionally done harm to these images. During the 1920s, when the caves fell under the domain of the Nizam of Hyderabad, he summoned Italian restorers to preserve the paintings. With no knowledge of tropical conditions, the Italian experts applied a coat of shellac over them. In time, however, the varnish darkened and obscured the paintings.µ Dr Spink believes that Ajanta may be the world’s most glorious fusion of art, architecture and sculpture. Last year, he and two other experts prepared a long report after holding a seminar at the caves, detailing the precautions ought to be taken. At long last, the ASI seems to be mending its ways. Anyone visiting the caves can observe how the chemistry branch, which is directly concerned with the deterioration of the paintings, is becoming more diligent in its cleaning methods. In a cave which it has transformed into an office, it displays photographs of the images as they were before and after treatment. While some clearly show that "the paintings don’t sing any more", as Dr Spink regrets, others have been revealed for the first time in hundreds of years.
The ASI can seek the collaboration of foreign experts too in obtaining know-how and equipment. The Andrew Mellon Foundation has offered to digitise Ajanta’s images to establish a permanent record, just as it has done for the ancient cave paintings at Dun Huang in China – the only comparable site in the world. Sites like Ajanta are too precious to fall victim to short-sighted chauvinism.
