Several caves were hollowed out the hills in the earlier times.
(i) Most of these were monasteries for Buddhist monks and some of them were decorated with paintings
(ii) As the caves were dark inside, most of these paintings were done in the light of torches.
(iii) The colours, which are glowing even after 1500 years, were made of plants and minerals.

The iron pillar at Mehrauli in Delhi is a remarkable example of the skills of Indian craftspersons :
(i) It is made of iron, 7.2.m high and weighs over 3 tonnes.
(ii) It was made about 1500years ago.
(iii) There is an inscription on the pillar mentioning a ruler named Chandra, who probably belonged to the Gupta dynasty.
(iv) The pillar has not rusted in all these years.

(i) Arthashastra,
(ii) Kalidasa's plays,
(iii) Harsha Charita,
(iv) Sangam Literature,
(v) Works by foreign travellers.

Indian mythology consists of tales of Gods, the devas and the asuras. However, there are only two famous epics - Mahabharata and Ramayana. Epics are grand, long compositions about heroic men and women and include stories about Gods.

The artisians of the ancient period excelled in making sculptures. The stoneworkers of the Mauryan period mastered the art of polishing stones. The Gandhara and Mathura schools of art, which excelled in sculpture flourished during the Kushana period.

While sitting in a Mandapa, I can see devotees, some of them going towards Garbhagriha to have it view of diety. Others are moving around the temple after their prayers. I can also hear the voice of sweet Bhajans that are sung by Kirtan Mandli in the temple campus. The whole atmosphere is spiritual and everybody seems to have an ultimate spiritual experience.

Yes, these caves may have been hollowed out. These caves had been shaped and carved.

The two Sanskrit epics of the India are the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Both the epics are familiar to us. 
The Mahabharata is about a war fought between the Kauravas and Pandavas, who were cousins. The Mahabharata is supposed to have been compiled by Vyasa. The Bhagavad Gita is a part of the Mahabharata.
The Ramayana is about Rama who had to fight with Ravana to get her wife Sita back from him.
He won and returned to Ayodhya, the capital city of Kosala, after his victory. Valmiki is recognised as the author of the Sanskrit Ramayana.

The Purana literally means old. The Puranas contain earlier Hindu religious stories about Gods and Goddesses, such as Vishnu, Shiva Durga or Parvati. Besides, there are accounts about the creation of the world and about kings.
The Puranas were written in simple Sanskrit verse and were meant to be heard by everyone, including women and Shudras, who were not allowed to study the Vedas. The Puranas were recited in temples by priests and people came to listen to them.

The famous Tamil epic, the Silappadikaram was composed by IIango around 1800 years ago. It is the story of a merchant named Kovalan, Who lived in puhar and fell in love with a courtesan named Madhavi, neglecting his wife Kannagi.
Later, he and Kannagi left Puhar and went to Madurai, where he was wrongly accused of theft by the court jeweller of the Pandya king. The king sentenced Kovalan to death.
Kannagi, who still loved him, was full of grief and anger at this injustice and destroyed the entire city of Madurai.

The pradakshina patha was a path which laid around the stupa. This was surrounded with railings.
Entrance to the path was through gateways. Devotees walked around the stupa in a clockwise direction, as a mark of devotion. Both railings and gateways were decorated with sculpture.

If I could get an opportunity to visit any one of these places, I would plan to go to Mahabalipuram.
The main reasons are:
(i) Each of the monolithic temples was carved out of huge, single stone and skilfully sculpted.
(ii) Both monolithic and structural temples are built in the same complex.
(iii) Most of the temples are intact. They have not been destroyed by passing the years.

Paper is used for:
(i) Making notebooks on which we write.
(ii) Making books.
(iii) Making newspapers.
(iv) Packing materials.
(v) Postcard, envelopes, postal stamps, revenue stamps.
(vi) Artificial flowers for decorative purpose.
(vii) Making games items like kite.

The manuscripts were usually written off by hand on palm leaf or bark of a tree known as the birch in early India.

Yes, the Romans did not use zero for counting. For example, some of the symbols are as: i-one, ii-two; iii-three, v-five, vii-seven, etc,