Preparation and application of international instruxents for the crotection and e-nservation of the cultural end natural heritage INDIA CONSERVATION OF THE KOMARAK TEMPLE, ORISSA by RM. Lemaize, M. Tabasso ited Nations Iducatienal, Scientific and Gultaral OrganizatiAssignment Report RP/1979-80/ 4/76/02 R/Co/CH/E1/146( Lenaire, ete) 27 May 1961Aim of the mission 1. This report was prepared in response to a request made by the Government of the Republic of India to the Director-General of Unesco, asking for the opinion of an expert on the problems raised by the condition of the temple of Sarya at Konarak. 2. Professor R. Lemaire was entrusted with this mission which was carried out under Unesco's regular programme for 1979-1980. Professor Lemaire visited India from 28 April to 6 May 1979 on his return from a meeting of the Consultative Coumittee for the Restoration of the Temple of Borobudur. An Air India strike prevented him from reaching Konarak, but he was able to hold working meetings in New Delhi with the Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India, Dr Thapar; the Assistant Director and archaeological engineer, Dr Sengupta; and the head of the Historical Monuments Laboratory at Dera-Dun, Dr Tandon. He made a detailed study of the papers relating to preservation work carried out at the temple since 1901. Professor Lemaire also met Mr Chundler, Federal Minister of Culture; Mr Routary, Prime Minister of the State of Orissa; and Mrs Vannucci, programme specialist at Unesco's Regional Office. 3. study of the documents concerning the temple at Konarak available at the Delhi offices of the Archaeological Survey of India, and the talks held withDr Thapar, Dr Sengupta and Dr Tandon, showed that there was need of a new on-the-spot appraisal of the condition of the temple and, most particularly, of the reasons for the weather- ing of its fabric. The help of a specialist on the deterioration and preservation Of stonework seemed particularly desirable in such an appraisal. The Government of India thus made a new request to Unesco's Director-General for a further mission to be sent, to be carried out by Professor Lenaire and a specialist on the weathering of stonework nominated by the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation an@ Restoration of Cultural Property (Rome) (ICCKOM). Mrs M. Tabasso, Director of the Materials Laboratory of the Instituto Centrale del Restauro in Rome, was selected as this specialist. Mrs Tabasso and Professor Lemaire carried out an on-the-spot examination of the temple at Konarak from 20 to 29 September 1980, accompanied by Dr Thapar and pr Tandon. The temple 4. The temple of SGrya at Konarak is one of the most famous monuments in eastern India. It is situated on the coast of the Gulf of Bengal, less than two kilo- metres from the shore and 65 kilometres east of the town of Bhubaneswar, capital of the State of Orissa. It was built in the thirteenth century by King Narasimhadeva of the Ganga dynasty (1238-1264). 5. Its plan is traditional, the temple being composed essentially of a sanctuary (sanctum) and an assembly hall (Jagamchana). The sanctuary portrays the chariot of the Sun god, carried on great wheels carved into the base of the building ana drawn by a dozen horses. sxternally, the whole temple is covered with fine sculp tures of very varied sizes. 6. The temple was abangoned in the sixteenth century and is now a ruin. Nothing remains of the assembly hall except the base and the columns. The upper part of the sanctuary (Sikhara) has also collapsed. A considerable portion of it remained until 1848, when a violent storm brought about its collapse. ‘The preservation of the temple 7. The temple of Xonarak has been the responsibility of the archaeological survey of India since 1936. Even before that date, work had been done on clearing and consolidating the ruins. In particular, the Jagamohana, being in danger of collapse, was strengthened in 1901. Some of the interior stonefacings were rebuilt at that time, but without their decorations as these had disappeared during the nineteenth-2- century. The enormous superstructure of the building threatened to crush the weak- ened walls supporting it, so these walls were strengthened internally by lining 4.50 metres thick, built "a seco". The space remaining was filled with sand. This consolidation has undoubtedly helped to maintain the temple's stability. 8. The preservation of the stonework of the temple, outstanding because of the great quality and large number of sculptures, has for decades been a major con~ cern of those in charge. As early as 1917, reports spoke of weathering attributable to marine salts and to vegetation. In 1938, an initial treatment with paraffin wax was given and since then, on many occasions, use has been made of other consolidating substances such as polyvinyl acetate, perspex, silicones, silicates, etc. None of these treatments appears to have given satisfactory results. anxiety is thus in- creasing year by year about the future of the monument. 9. In view of this situation, the Government of India, on 7 November 1990, set up an interdisciplinary committee with the task of studying the different aspects of safeguarding the temple. This committee decided to carry out fresh research into the causes of the weathering of the stonework, and to propose solutions for the de- finitive consolidation of the temple. The stone, and causes of weathering 10. The temple at Konarak was built of a sandstone called Khondalite, the structure of which is generally lacking in homogeneity. Indian specialists have identi fied its exact origins and have studied its chemical composition and physical struc- ture, as well as the process of its weathering, Excellent scientific reports have been written on these problems, especially in recent years. They have most certainly clarified our knowledge about the mechanisms by which this stone is destroyed. The present situation can be summed up as follows. Macroscopic description of the weathering 11, On the basis of a close visual inspection, the following observations can be made about the condition of the stone from which most of the sculptures and wall ornaments have been carved. 12. The stone is extremely heterogeneous, Its appearance and characteristics very from block to block as do the minerals of which it is composed, their granulo- metry and distribution. 13, As a result of this heterogeneity one finds very weathered stone side by side with stone in a good state of preservation. 14. There seems to be no relationship between the areas of weathered stone and either their position in the monument or the direction in which they face - except that the stone has been very seriously attacked by biological factors on the north face of the monument, and also in the upper part of an area on the south side. 15. Regarding the attack by biological factors, an abundance of algae and different types of lichen is visible in areas not treated with biocides. The algae form a black layer that greatly changes the colour of the stone. In addition, in the dampest areas (i.e. in the hollows and the angles that receive less licht), moss grows in profusion. In general, the areas recently treated with zinc Zluosilicate show no trace of vegetation visible to the naked eye, and the stone does not seem to have suffered colour change, The treatment therefore gives satisfactory results.-3- 16. There appears to be little or no saline efflorescence, even in the areas cleaned about three years ago. Rainfall, which was abundant until a few days before inspection of the monument, may have a leaching effect, but at present no forn of weathering is anywhere visible that could be connected with the crystallizaticn or dissolving of salts. 17, ‘There is one zone, however, which is an exception to this. It is on the south face of the upper part of the assembly hall, on the terrace where there are the large statues of dancing girls. Its orientation exposes it to the sea winds. In this zone, which is two or three square metres in size and consists essentially of mural ornaments, pronounced weathering of the "honeycomb" type, with disintegration and powdering of the stone, is clearly visible. This honeycombing is very probably linked to the porosity and the heterogeneous nature of the stone, and also to the presence of soluble salts brought by the sea wind. Also, the area is subject to the infiltration and percolation of water from the upper parts of the temple, which clearly accelerates the weathering process. 18. This hypothesis is confirmed by the result of several analyses, revealing a high concentration of chlorides, carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India and reported orally. 19. In the affected area the original surface has been lost to a depth of several centimetres, but this does not appear to jeopardize, at least for the time being, the stability of this part of the structure. However, there could be prob- lems in the future if the degeneration worsens. In this part of the temple, the xoofing stones above the gallery have in fact already shifted a little and this cught to be monitored in the future, 20. There axe very few cracks or breaks in the facing stones, and even where they are present, they do not seem to threaten the stability of the areas concerned. 21, Despite recent very heavy rain, there is no sign of rising damp. The stone seems to be macroporous and therefore not capable of exercising a strong capil-~ lary attraction. In a few places in the base, in the joints between the rough stones placed one on the other without mortar, one can see traces of greater damp but this does not seem to cause weathering, except weathering of biological crigin (light growtns of mosses, algae and lichens). Condition of the stonework 22. On the strength of the cbservations made above regarding the zones inspected (in so far as they were accessible), it would be fair te say that in general, the condition of the stone is good despite the fact that certain areas have suf fered considerable weathering over the centuries - weathering that has now ceased or has very much slowed down, The fact that there are no loose or powdery areas, no raised crusts, etc., indicates that the stone has now reached a state of equilib~ xium in which the inevitable process of ageing is occurring very slowly. 23, Studies of the weathering process carried out by chemists of the archaeological Survey of India have shown that the stone is made up of a very tough matrix of variable density, and of "fillings" of garnet crystals of a weaker tyoe, subject to great and rapid chemical transformation under the effect of water and evacuated by water. The weak parts of the stone have dissolved in the course of time, and this has transformed a stone that looked homogeneous at first into a gorous structure with a reticulated appearance, This seems extremely resistant to the normal weather ing processes. It seens, therefore, that barring any important change in the micro- clinate, no rapid weathering of the stone is to be feared in the foreseeable-4- on-the-spot examination shows that the monument is in fact in a better condition than it appears at first sight, and than the reports on laboratory chemical studies fad led one to believe. Almost all the facing stones have undergone the changes described above, and have therefore reached a stage of relative stability as regards weathering Zactors. 24, The weathering at present observable is essentially attributable to the in- trinsic nature, structure and texture of the stone rather than to external fac~ tors such as the temple's orientation, the heicht of the terrain, etc, Neither does the mass of sand inside the temple seem to be having a harmful effect on the preser- vation of the external sculptured stone. It is also clear that the meticulous main- tenance work carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India is helping to safe~ guard the fabric. Condition of the structure 25. What remains of the temple at Konarak is structurally sound. Particular prob~ lems certainly exist. For example, a little while aco some corner-stones be~ came detached from the pyramidal roof of the Jagamohana. They have since been re~ placed. This is a fairly normal phenomenon for a building more than seven centuries old, constructed by a mortarless stacking technique. Thorough regular examination of all parts of the building particularly exposed to heavy strains should greatly Limit this danger in the future. Such examination has been undertaken. 26. The consolidation carried out in 1901, which included filling the internal area of the assembly hall with a wallof dry stones and by an enormous volume of sand, could at first sight have had a harmful effect on the hygrometric state of the monu- ment and on its fabric, since in theory it forms an enormous reservoir in which monscon water could accumulate. In actual fact, it has had no obvious damaging ef- fect on the stability cf the temple. 27, Penetration of water into the interior of the structure of any part of the temple has been prevented by the general pointing of the external joints of all the non-vertical walls of the building. 28. Hygronetric measurements taken after the monsoon inside the mass of sand prove that its water content gives no cause for alarm. Regular maintenance of the pointing is carried out. 29. The only weak point in this respect is the fact that rainwater from the terraces runs away naturally down the carved vertical walls, and in the monsoon period a considerable quantity of water accumulates on them, which could have a damaging ef~ fect in the long run. Controlled evacuation of such water through a drainage net- work, to be planned having regard to the structure and the architecture of the temple, would be of great help to the safeguarding of the sculptures. 30. This improvement is particularly needed on the north and south sides of the Jagamohana where there were once doorways and staircases, now destroyed. The stonework of the interior masonry, now exposed, is a sort of entirely porous laterite, and after the monsoon it forms a veritable reservoir of moisture behind walls covers with very fine sculpture, An investigation should be made of the best way to protect these stones, and in any case a study should be made of how to improve the evacuation c= the rainwater which now drains away by infiltration and by simply running over the masonry.intenance of the monument 31, This is remarkable. Few monuments in the world are maintained with the care which the Archaeological Survey of India gives to the country's major monuments. ‘The stones are regularly cleaned and those that need it are strengthened. 32. This work is carried out with meticulous care. In fact, no difference in either appearance or preservation is observable between stones treated with a one per cent solution of polymethylmetracrilate in toluene ~ the preservative at present used - and untreated stones, The treatzent applied thus alters neither the colour nor the appearance of the stone. In addition, in spite of its dilution, the solution seems to give effective protection to the fabric. No adverse effect frou the treatment given can be reported. (1) The stability of the masonry is checked and the joints restored with no detriment to the appearance of the temple, originally built without mortar. The surrounding area is laid out and maintained. This aain~ tenance is of vital importance for the survival of the monument and we can only express our admiration for wnat is done, 33, ‘The sole criticism one could make concerns an attempt to vestore a sculpted panel (called the "Griafe Scene") the stones of which are very weathered. These original (?) shapes were partly reconstituted, using a suitable mortar, so as to restore the clarity of the scene. This is a dangerous endeavour for there is considerable risk of error and the ultimate gain is minimal. It would ke preferable not to extend this rather unsatisfactory process. 34, Should other restorations of this kind be required: (which is unlikely), we recommend that they should be limited to what is strictly necessary and that mortar should be employed whose porosity is comparable to that of the stone. In this way, any possible evaporation of water and crystallization of salts will attack the mortar rather than the stone. This result can be achieved by a judicious choice of the quality and granulometry of the inert matter and the nature of the binder. Lime mortar would be suitable, provided that no special qualities of mechanical strength are required. These are in any case not necessary for this type of work. 38. Similarly, it would be rash to follow up suggestions for archaeological recon- struction of those parts of the monument that have collapsed. Certainly a nore intensive anastylosis could be profitable, restoring to their places some of the thousands of carved stones, now piled outside the temple, which have come from parts cf the monument that have collapsed. This is a difficult and lengthy operation which requires long preparation and strict method. Proposals 1 additional studies on the stone 36. The mechanism of weathering has been studied by the chemical laboratory of the Archaeological Survey, and a report on this will be published soon. Neverthe- less, this study could be supplemented by an examination of the size of the pores and the mechanical characteristics of the weathered stone, comparing them with un- weathered stone, Such a study would augment the documentation existing on this (1) However, it may be useful to draw the attention of the authorities to the dangers of the excessive use of certain treatments, for example with perspex. Though no damage has been seen at Xonarak, the same cannot be said of certain Jain temples at Xhujaraho, where the sculptures are covered with a high-sh: glaze which spoils then aesthetically and could constitute a future denger to the soundness of the stone.~6- question and would give a ceeper knowledge of the problem which is interesting from the scientific point of view. It ought also to investigate the nature and distribu- tion of salts in the part of the monument affected by honeycombing, and should throw Light more particularly on the causes of such an exceptional situation in this area. The examination should also concern itself with the microflora and the autotrophic flora which develop on the monument. 37. The only very weathered area, described earlier in this report, could provide a useful test area for investigating the effectiveness of deep impregnation treatment, In fact, this area no lenger shows any trace of the original surface and has therefore lost all aesthetic value, and being an area at present suffering from obvious weathering, it would be very suitable as a trial area in situ for sub- stances and methods of treatment and consolidation. These trials would provide use- ful information for similar cases that might occur at a later date. 38, The experts wish to express their gratitude to the Indian authorities for the cordiality shown them and for the help they received in carrying out their mission. They particularly wish to thank Dr Thapar, Director-General of the Archae- ological Survey of India and his associate Dr Tandon, Director of the Laboratory, who accompanied them to Konarak and assisted in the examination of the monument.