Facts Time line John Smith and Ajanta Caves Discovery after 1000 Years

Facts Time line John Smith  and  Ajanta Caves Discovery after 1000 Years 

Captain John Smith, a British army officer with the 28th Cavalry of the Madras Presidency, is credited with the rediscovery of the Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, on April 28, 1819. 

At that time, the Ajanta caves, located in Maharashtra, India, were completely overgrown by jungle and forgotten by the world for many centuries.

While on a tiger-hunting expedition in the Sahyadri Hills, Smith spotted an archway from a cliff across a ravine near the Waghora River. 

Guided by a local shepherd boy, he reached Cave No. 10, a chaityagriha (prayer hall) dating to the 2nd century BCE, and was awestruck by its Buddhist architecture and murals. 

The caves, carved into a horseshoe-shaped gorge between the 2nd century BCE and 6th century CE, had been abandoned for over a millennium, hidden by dense jungle.

Smith marked his discovery by inscribing “John Smith, 28th Cavalry, 28 April 1819” on a mural in Cave 10, across the 13th pillar, over a Bodhisattva painting. 

The graffiti, scratched at about 7 feet high due to accumulated debris, remains visible 

His discovery brought global attention to the 30 rock-cut Buddhist caves, renowned for their exquisite paintings, sculptures, and Jataka tale depictions, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Smith, nicknamed “Tiger Smith” for hunting 99 tigers, inadvertently unveiled a masterpiece of ancient Indian art. 

The Ajanta Caves themselves are a group of about 30 rock-cut Buddhist caves built between the 2nd century BCE and the 6th century CE.

They are world-famous for their ancient paintings, frescos, and sculptures, which are considered masterpieces of Buddhist religious art and early Indian art.

The Ajanta Caves were already known and actively used in ancient India — especially between the 2nd century BCE to around the 7th century CE.

After Buddhism started declining in India, and Hindu kingdoms rose, the caves were gradually abandoned.

Over centuries, thick forest and jungle covered the area, and people forgot about them — they were lost to the outside world.

So when Captain John Smith found the caves in 1819, he did not discover them for the first time in history —

He "re-discovered" them for the modern world after they had been forgotten for over a thousand years.

Why Ajanta Caves were forgotten ?

When Ajanta Caves were built (2nd century BCE – 6th century CE), Buddhism was very powerful in India.

But after the 7th century, Buddhism started declining and Hindu Dharma started to grow. 

Without active Buddhist monks and followers, the caves lost their purpose and were no longer maintained.

Ajanta was no longer on any important trade route or pilgrimage route, so it was easily forgotten

Thick forests grew around the caves because they were abandoned for centuries.

Without roads, signs, or people living there, the caves became inaccessible and hidden.

In those ancient times, there were no newspapers, GPS, or mass communication.

So once a place was abandoned and locals stopped visiting, knowledge simply faded over a few generations.

About Ajanta Caves - is an elegant complex of viharas(monasteries), shrines and chaitya-grihas (stupa-halls)

The first caves had been excavated around the first century BCE-first century CE, when the area was part of the large Satavahana empire. 

These caves (numbers 9-12, except 11), right in the middle of the complex, are fairly humble viharas, with the main devotional focus served by the apsidal chaitya-grihas of caves 9 and 10, both of which feature some of the oldest paintings at the site.

By the late fifth century, during the reign of the most illustrious emperor of the dynasty, Harisena, the Vakatakas had regained control of the old oceanic and overland trade routes and the economic conditions were in place for new, more Buddhist building work to begin.

Here’s a short and simple timeline of Ajanta Caves history after John Smith’s rediscovery:

1819:

Captain John Smith accidentally finds the Ajanta Caves while hunting.

1820s–1840s:

British officials and scholars (like James Fergusson) start studying and documenting the caves.

Some early visitors even cause damage — graffiti, carvings, and taking artifacts.

1844–1863:

British India Government orders the caves to be surveyed and mapped.

Artists like Robert Gill are sent to copy the paintings and make sketches for preservation.

Sadly, many of Gill’s copies were later destroyed in a fire in London.

Late 1800s:

Ajanta’s importance grows among historians and archaeologists.

People realize it’s a masterpiece of Buddhist art and ancient Indian architecture.

1900s:

Efforts begin to preserve and protect the caves from further damage.

Ajanta gets attention from art historians worldwide.

1983:

UNESCO declares Ajanta Caves a World Heritage Site.

Today:

Ajanta is a protected national monument under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

It’s one of India's most famous tourist and historical sites, attracting scholars, artists, and tourists from all over the world.

Photo - A painted mural scene from the 'Mahajanaka Jataka' in Ajanta's cave 1, showing King Janaka and his wife Sivali.