South and Southeast Asia APAH Vocabulary

 Ashlar masonry: carefully cut and grooved stones that support a building without the use

of concrete or other kinds of masonry

 Axis-mundi: axis that connects heaven and earth

 Buddha: founder of Buddhism; multiple forms; has achieved full enlightenment

 Bulbous: when describing a dome; fat or bulging at the bottom before tapering inwards

slightly

 Cenotaph: an empty tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person

 Chahar bagh: “fourfold garden”; a garden often divided into quarters by divisions of water

 Chamfered corner: a flattened corner of two buildings, often at 45 degrees

 Chhatri: elevated, domed tower

 Corbelled arch: constructed by offsetting successive courses of stone (or brick) so that

they project towards the archway's center from each supporting side, until the courses

meet at the apex of the archway

 Embryo room: the central most room in an Hindu shrine; this room houses the deity’s

statue and is believed to the deity’s dwelling place; typically, very small

 Hasht Bihisht: refers to a specific type of floorplan common in Mughal architecture where

the plan is divided into 8 chambers surrounding a central room

 Iwan: In Islamic architecture, a vaulted room opening to a courtyard

 Jali: perforated and decorated screen, usually with calligraphic or geometric ornamentation

 Maithuna: depictions of couples explicitly engaged in sexual intercourse

 Mausoleum: a building that contains tombs

 Miniature: small paintings on paper, prized for their detail and precision

 Mughals: Islamic rulers in India, known for opulence and extravagance

 Nimbus: a circle or oval shape surrounding a religious figure, representing spiritual light or

glory

 Panchayatana: Hindu temple where the main shrine is surrounded by four smaller shrines

 Pietra dura: term for the inlay technique of using cut and fitted, highly polished colored

stones to create images on a neutral colored stone

 Shiva: the Hindu god of destruction

 Stupa: a dome-shaped Buddhist shrine

 Tantric: referring to transcendence; often used to describe deeply meditative and intimate

sexual activity

 Torana: a gateway near a stupa that has two upright posts and three horizontal lintels;

they are usually elaborately carved

 Urna: red dot on the forehead of Buddhist figures

 Ushnisha: top-knot on the top of Buddha’s head (references a humble crown)

 Vishnu: the Hindu god of preservation

 Wat: a Buddhist monastery or temple in Cambodia

 Yakshi: female and male fertility figures in Buddhist and Hindu art