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ample, the restoration carried out in front of Caves 113-114. This group
originally developed from the original core consisting of Caves 114 and
115, each with its individual antechamber carved out of the rock. After
a collapse of the exterior part of the cliff caused a major damage to the
antechamber of Cave 114 – the antechamber of Cave 115 was spared for
the most part – restoration was carried out by inserting a cantilevered
timber structure very similar to that in front of Caves 110-111A. This new
timber antechamber also incorporated Cave 113 (Fig. 8).
The antechamber of Cave 118 was likewise carved out of the rock. Its
plan was rectangular with a truncated pyramid-like ceiling, a fairly com-
mon ceiling type in antechambers serving a single cave. The collapse
of the cliff face between Caves 116 and 119 destroyed the front part of
the antechamber of Cave 118. The cave was subsequently kept in use by
adding a cantilevered timber structure, whose installation marks are still
clearly visible. The repair was somewhat complicated by the shape of the
ceiling which called for short lateral walls, made higher by cutting away
the sloping sides of the truncated pyramidal ceiling to join a newly carved
horizontal groove on the main wall just above door and windows. The inner
ends of the rafters were then inserted into this groove to form the upper
section of the cantilevered structure and also the support for a dropped
ceiling. The level of the floor, lower than the one in the main chamber, is
the result of heavy erosion which has obliterated the grooves carved on
the floor where the joists that formed the foundation of the cantilevered
structure were inserted. Some of the postholes which held the inner ends
of these joists are still visible at the foot of the main wall in spite of modern
restorations. Two grooves carved at about 150 cm from the floor on both
lateral walls, seem to have been used to insert reinforcements of the front
part of the newly set up wooden structure (Fig. 6).
A very similar restoration was carried out in the antechamber of Cave
116, the process here was more straightforward, since the original ceiling
was flat and there was no need to elevate the lateral walls to set up the
cantilevered structure. In this case, the outermost of the three layers of
plaster was used to embed the beam into the horizontal groove carved on
each sidewall at about 150 cm from the floor, a structure similar to that
seen in Cave 118 (Fig. 7).
The front part of the antechamber of Cave 117 was not restored after
the collapse. In this case a different solution was devised. The original
floor of the antechamber was approximately 30 cm lower than the floor
of the main chamber. This can be ascertained from the percussion marks
on the remaining three walls. The present floor level of the antechamber
is approximately 80 cm lower than the main chamber. It seems that after
the collapse of the front part of the antechamber its floor was excavated
as to facilitate the access from below and, because of the closeness to the
ground, there was no need to build a timber balcony.
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Modifications were also carried out in the antechamber of Cave 119,
which in spite of the collapse of its front part it was not restored with
timber structures. The height and width of the window was modified by
carving a corresponding area of the ceiling controlled the amount of light
entering the main chamber, this modification served to improve the func-
tionality of the main chamber.
Other larger or smaller repairs were carried out within the main cham-
bers. The walls of the main chamber of Cave 119[2] are covered with five
layers of plaster, each of these were covered with several coats of white-
wash. These minor repairs, each of which was part of routine upkeep of
the cave, are important because they indicate that the cave was used for
a prolonged period of time. The fact that it was regularly whitewashed,
when it was not completely re-plastered, suggests that it was an important
cave. The gesso flooring in the main chamber of Cave 117 is another case
of a routine repair. Since the space used to circumambulate the altar was
limited and saw a lot of foot traffic which meant that, this part of the gesso
flooring was given to wear out. In this case the damaged part was sawn
out and eliminated. The resulting hole was then filled with new gesso.
2.3 Paintings and Painting Style
There are only a few painted caves in District Six: Caves 110, 114, 116,
117 and 118. In square Caves 116 and 118 the paintings are concentrated
in the main chamber, while the antechambers appear to have been simply
whitewashed. The antechamber of Cave 117, instead, was fully painted.
All these caves were painted according to the typical canon of Style A
(First Indo-Iranian Style, see Howard, Vignato 2015, pp. 4-5). Cave 114
is the only central pillar cave in this district. As is customary in central
pillar caves its main chamber and rear areas were both painted in Style
B (Second Indo-Iranian Style). The same style was used to decorate Cave
110, a square cave. The iconography of the paintings in these five caves
has been discussed for over a century and it will continue to be the object
of future studies. Suffice to say that narrative in each cave differs from
that of others – as discussed above. It is remarkable that the layout of the
painting is also different in each cave, this in addition to the atypical lay-
outs and subjects represented, which are unique in Kuča. A very concise
account of the different layouts clarifies this situation.
The three caves painted according to Style A – Caves 116, 117 and
118 – each had a distinct layout. Cave 116 presents two large paintings.
One occupies the right wall, while the other fills the left lunette – that is,
one occupies a lower section of the cave the other an upper section in the
opposite wall, creating an asymmetry that is further accentuated by the