The Ajanta Caves (Ajiṇṭhā leni; Marathi: अजिंठा लेणी) in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India are about 29rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to about 480 or 650 CE.[1] The cavesinclude paintings and sculptures described by the government Archaeological Survey of India as "the finest surviving examples of Indian art, particularly painting",[2] which are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art, with figures of the Buddha and depictions of the Jataka tales.[3] The caves were built in two phases starting around the 2nd century BCE, with the second group of caves built around 400–650 CE according to older accounts, or all in a brief period of 460 to 480 according to the recent proposals of Walter M. Spink.[4] The site is a protected monument in the care of the Archaeological Survey of India,[5] and since 1983, the Ajanta Caves have been aUNESCO World Heritage Site.
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