Photo 1003(2242)

Genre: Architectural Photography

A small format print, rather dark. Caption in Bloch's list is given as 'Ruined temple in river', but this appears to refer to the ghat and foreground area rather than the building, which appears of a secular nature. Caddy mentions the site in a report of his activities, written in camp at the end of March 1895, and subsequently printed in the Bengal Proceedings (General Department): 'At Aska a very ancient temple once stood in the river. Cows, thay say, used to visit the god there and supply him with milk; but the river and everything else has changed since. But some of the stones, endure, and let into the ghat steps are one or two ancient sculptures. There are many under the sand - twenty-one tiers of stones have been counted, where I could note but seven...A small shrine (with an inscription in the thatched Mantapam) takes the place of the ancient pile, the record of whose stones is buried in the silt of the river.' Caddy's reports are most conveniently consulted in a bound version at IOL pressmark X1200, 'Report: reproduction of Asoka inscriptions'.