Alexander Cunningham’s Excavation of Bharhut

Record summary

Alexander Cunningham’s nineteenth-century work at Bharhut documented and removed numerous railings, pillars, reliefs, and inscriptions associated with a Buddhist stupa. The material became foundational for the study of early Buddhist art and Brahmi inscriptions, while its dispersal to museums also exemplifies colonial archaeology and the separation of sculpture from architectural context. Bharhut is valuable for comparing excavation practice, heritage collecting, and the reconstruction of damaged monuments. Surviving reports and museum records must be read together because the original site arrangement is only partly recoverable.