Late Buddhist Art
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The Buddhist art of 7cAD was a product of Pala and Sena dynasties. Nalanda was an important centre that boasted of a university, stupa and viharas. We have the invaluable information from the chinese pilgrim Huen-Tsang.
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The stupa reveals the influence of Gupta architecture. The base of the stupa is divided into two storeys. The first storey contains sculptures of Buddha’s and Bodhisattvas in niches that contain smaller images.The drum of the stupa is octagonal in shape, some of the facets are plain and the others are decorated with Buddha’s image. The façade is similar to the present Mahabodhi temple. The plan of the viharas includes small cells grouped around the four sides of an open courtyard.