Professor Craven traces the development of Indian art clearly and vividly--from the first, still mysterious, beginnings in the Indus valley, through the great masterpieces of Buddhist and Hindu art to the coming of Islam, the eclectic culture of the Mughal court and the golden age of Indian miniature painting. Much of this art is immediately accessible to the outsider, but much is also enigmatic, needing interpretation and guidance before it can be fully enjoyed: the strange pantheon of the Hindu gods, the subtle insights of Buddhist mysticism or the complex symbolism of the miniatures. 200 illus., 30 in color.