Copy of painting inside the caves of Ajanta (cave 21)

The scene depicted in the Ajanta frescoes illustrates narratives from the Jataka tales, which recount the Buddha’s previous incarnations and moral teachings. By reproducing this imagery, the copy preserves the religious and didactic content that guided Buddhist devotees at the site.

John Griffiths and his seven Indian apprentices rendered the mural in oil on canvas, translating the original fresco’s pigment palette and compositional layout. Their careful brushwork captures the delicate outlines and muted tones of the sandstone walls, while the medium allows for greater durability than the fragile original plaster.

After the Ajanta caves were rediscovered in 1819, early documentation efforts suffered setbacks, notably a fire in 1866 that destroyed most of Major Robert Gill’s copies. From 1872 to 1885 Griffiths and his students spent each winter in the caves, producing about three hundred oil copies to safeguard the visual record.

The Ajanta murals were created by Buddhist monks over several centuries, reflecting evolving artistic conventions and devotional practices. The 19th‑century copying project occurred during British colonial interest in Indian antiquities, when Western scholars sought to preserve and study these remote artworks.

Griffiths’s oil reproductions remain valuable reference material for conservators and scholars, especially where the original frescoes have deteriorated. The copies continue to inform research on early Indian painting techniques and the transmission of Buddhist iconography.