In form they singularly resemble the earliest Roman Catholic churches.

Excavated out of the solid rock, they have a nave and side aisles, terminating in an apse or semi-dome, round which the aisle is carried.

One at Karli, built in this manner, is one hundred and twenty-six feet long and forty-five wide, with fifteen richly carved columns on each side, separating the nave from the aisles.

The facade of this temple is also richly ornamented, and has a great open window for lighting the interior, beneath an elegant gallery or rood-loft.
The Buddhist rock-cut monasteries in India are also numerous, though long since deserted.

Between seven and eight hundred are known to exist, most of them having been excavated between B.C.200 and A.D.500.