Who among the following scholars, considered Sanchi to be a centre of ‘Tree and Serpent worship’ due to his ignorance?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → James Fergusson
James Fergusson, one of the earliest modern art historians, considered Sanchi a centre of tree and serpent worship because he was not familiar with Buddhist literature and studied the images on their own.
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| – | – | – | 30-05 S1 30-05 S2* 06-06 S3* | – |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2026-27): “9.3 Popular traditions … Consider, too, the serpent, which is found on several pillars (Fig. 4.21). This motif seems to be derived from popular traditions, which were not always recorded in texts. Interestingly, one of the earliest modern art historians, James Fergusson, considered Sanchi to be a centre of tree and serpent worship. He was not familiar with Buddhist literature – most of which had not yet been translated – and arrived at this conclusion by studying only the images on their own.” |