| Sitabenga and Jogimara Caves monument | |
|---|---|
 Jogimara cave | |
   | |
| Coordinates | 22°53′34.5″N 82°54′22.9″E / 22.892917°N 82.906361°E |
| Entrances | Two major caves, other minor |
| Features | 8 panels of oldest known murals in India, ancient theatre-like stage and seating |
The Sitabenga and Jogimara Caves, sometimes referred to either as Sitabenga Cave or Jogimara Cave, are ancient cave monuments nested in the north side of Ramgarh hills in Puta village, Chhattisgarh, India. Dated between the 3rd-century BCE to 1st-century BCE, they are notable for their non-religious inscriptions in Brahmi script and Magadhi language, and one of the oldest colored frescoes in Asia.[1] Some scholars state that the Sitabenga cave is the oldest performance theatre on the Indian subcontinent,[2] but others question whether it was indeed a theatre and suggest that it may have been a resting place (dharmashala) along an ancient trade route.[3] The inscription at the Jogimara cave is equally disputed, with one translation interpreting it as a love-graffiti by a girl and a boy, while another translation interpreting it as a female dancer and a male sculptor-painter creating the two caves together to serve others.[4] The inscription is also the oldest known mention of the word "devadasi", but this seems just a name and it is unlikely that this was related to any ancient Indian temple since the site and nearby area has no evidence of any Buddhist, Hindu or Jain temple built between the 3rd-century BCE and 8th-century CE.
The caves are partly natural, partly sculpted. The regional tradition associates it with the epic of Ramayana, one where Sita, Rama and Lakshmana came at the start of their exile. The oldest ruins and temple artwork found here relate to the Ramayana, all likely from the 8th to 12th-century based on their iconographic features.
- ^ Percy Brown (1918). The Heritage of India: Indian Painting. Association Press. pp. 16–18. ISBN 978-81-206-1888-6.
- ^ Anand Lal, ed. (2004). The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre. Oxford University Press. pp. 15, 415, 449–450. ISBN 9780195644463.
- ^ Chakravarti, Ranabir (1995). "Merchants and Other Donors at Ancient Bandhogarh". South Asian Studies. 11 (1): 33–41. doi:10.1080/02666030.1995.9628493.
- ^ Upinder Singh (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century. Pearson Education India. p. 50. ISBN 978-81-317-1120-0.