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Show Gorgeous Temple Built to Win the Love of a Woman, but Proved Failure Of all the Buddhistic remains in Java the Temple of Boroboedoer is the most famous. It dates from the Eighth or the Ninth century and is built of volcanic vol-canic stone over a huge mound, the latter forming the core of the stupa and being inclosed by four sculptured sculp-tured galleries, on the tops of which are three terraces, the uppermost being surmounted by a central da-goba. da-goba. Each of the four sides of this immense structure measures 530 feet and there are something like two miles of bas-reliefs and carvings on the walls of the galleries. gal-leries. According to legend, relates a writer in the Los Angeles Times, Borboedoer was built to win the affection af-fection of a capricious young woman. wom-an. She insisted that her lover, an architect, should design, construct and complete the finest temple on earth as a wedding gift to her within with-in the space of 12 months. She stipulated stip-ulated that it should be perfect in every detail. All this the energetic youth promised, prom-ised, as he was very much enamored enam-ored of the young woman. Being wealthy and closely allied to the ruling powers of the country he was able to enlist the services of thousands of men from near and afar. The greatest sculptors and builders of the time were pressed into service, a year of high-pressure construction resulting. At the close of 12 months the temple was completed. The architect archi-tect conducted his lady love upon a tour of inspection, watching all the time the glistening sparkle in her eye. But the sparkle was not for him. She had set her mind upon finding a defect and this caused the smile that gave a light to her gazing. Coming at last to the end of the tens of thousands of figures decorating decorat-ing the walls and terraces she found one statue that was unfinished. Whereupon she coldly reminded her lover that her conditions had not been fulfilled left him and later married a more favored youth. |