Maharashtra has always been one of the most preferred destinations for tourists. There are many places that are very famous amongst tourists and Ajanta and Ellora caves always top on this list. These are ancient caves that hold their historical past for many decades.
It is also certain that these caves have been rated as the world’s best Heritage sites by UNESCO. The caves are considered the star attraction of Maharashtra and the local government has been doing a lot to promote tourism for both these places.
The caves can be accessed just within a few hour’s drive from Mumbai –The Business capital of the country. So if we speak of these two caves, then there are many lesser-known facts or Myths related to them.
List of top 10 interesting facts about Ajanta & Ellora caves
Rock Monuments
As far as caves are concerned, these are the main attractions because of the rock monuments they hold inside their hearts. The most astonishing fact is that these are no ordinary monuments as some of them date back to the 2nd century BCE.
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Carved in different periods of time
There are many people who related Ajanta and Ellora caves as the same historical monument. Even these are related to tourism activities and sightseeing, still, they were carved during different historical times. Ajanta caves hold their past history dated from 2nd Century BCE to over 480 BCE while the monuments at the Ellora caves date back to around 9th Century BC.
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Represents Different Traditions
As far as caves in the Ellora are concerned, these have monuments and carvings that actually belong to Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cultures while the Monuments in the Ajanta caves belong mostly to the Buddhist culture. There are clear signs that indicate the facts that have been mentioned here above.
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Houses Famous Temples
When speaking of the famous Ajanta caves, it is a place that has around five different chaityas, which are also regarded as the ancient time’s prayer hall. At the Ellora caves, you may find the most famous Kailasa temples. These are the temples that are desiccated to Lord Shiva.
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Best Carved Monuments
No matter what, visitors often enjoy visiting the caves because of the beautifully carved monuments that have been carved mostly out of a single rock structure. You may not find any joints in the stones that are used for carving the monuments and other art effects inside the caves.
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Lord Vishnu avatar
This is a fact that is true about the Ellora caves. In cave number 15 which is at the Ellora caves is popular for depicting different Avatars of Lord Vishnu. This place depicts the famous Dashavtars (ten Avatars) of Lord Vishnu.
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Combinations of Many Caves
Both Ajanta and Ellora are having a different number of caves. As far as Ellora is concerned, you may find over 34 different caves in the same place. As far as Ajanta caves are concerned there are around 15 caves in number.
Accidental Discoveries
As far as history is concerned it is obvious that Ajanta caves were actually accidentally discovered in the year 1819 by a British official named Jon Smith. The caves were discovered by the Official the moment he was on his tiger hunting expedition.
Ancient Paintings
Apart from ancient monuments, when you visit the famous Ajanta caves you may also get to enjoy the ancient paintings related to Gautam Budha and his Jataka tales. These paintings are related to the life story of Gautam Budha.
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Special Painting Material
It is obvious that the paintings at the Ajanta caves are very special. Each of the paintings at the Ajanta caves was in fact made up of a special type of Glue material.
It is certain that both Ahanta and Ellora caves are very special and closely related to the ancient history of Maharashtra and the Budha religion. When visiting these caves you may get to enjoy the paintings done in different colors like Lazuli, Kaolin, Terra Verte, yellow ochre, and lamp black.
For travelers, there certainly is no other heritage site better than these caves. The caves are located in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra. If you want to visit these caves you may have to travel to Ajantha village which is a hardly nine hours drive from Mumbai City.
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