2500 - 1500 BCE

• Indus River Civilizations (Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro) flourish
• early cultures cease with the Aryan invasions starting in ca.1600 BCE

1500 - 550 BCE

• Age of Vedism
• creation of the great epics (Vedas, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Upanishads)

550 - 327 BCE

• Buddha lives (556 - 486 BCE)
• beginning of the Buddhist Age

327 - 322 BCE

• Alexander the Great invades and conquers northern India
• Hellenistic influences begin in Indian art

322 - 172 BCE

• Chandragupta Maurya establishes the Mauryan Empire
• grandson Ashoka (reigned 273-232 BCE) spreads Buddhism throughout Indian subcontinent
• Mauryan followed by Shunga Empire (185-172 BCE) and a period of chaos (172-73 BCE)
• first Buddhist stupas, chaityas, and viharas, including the early caves at Ajanta, are constructed

73 BCE - 320 CE

• Andhra Empire flourishes first in north, but later pushed into southern India by the Kushan

1st century - 320

• Kushan Empire (a central Asian, possibly western Chinese, nomadic people) flourishes in northern India after entering via the Silk Route
• beginning of two earliest art schools at Mathura and Gandhara
• Buddhism divides into two sects

320 - 600

• Gupta Empire from the northeast Ganges River area conquers Andhra and Kushan regions
• Renaissance of Buddhist art and culture, including many of the paintings from the caves at Ajanta

600 - ca.15th century

• Post-Gupta period
• "baroque," excessive form of Buddhist art, the beginning of its gradual decline in India
• rise of Rajput princedoms and return of new form of Vedism as Hinduism
• flourishing of Hindu art and culture composition of Gita Govinda and Kamasutra

15th century - 1857

• Islam enters India
• Moghul Empire flourishes
• establishment of Rajput and Moghul styles of miniature painting
• Shah Jahan builds Taj Mahal (1632-1648)
• British East India Company secures Britain as strong presence in India
• Sepoy Mutiny (1857) results in India declared a colony of Britain

1857 - 1947

• British rule ends with the independence of India and the creation of the two Islamic states of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan (now Pakistan)

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