New Delhi: Mamallapuram or Mahabalipuram is a famous town in Tamil Nadu whose popularity lies in its UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hindu Group of Monuments, which is one of the most popular tourist places in our country. Mamallapuram was a major port city in the Pallava kingdom and it was named after Pallava king Narasimhavarman I. In this article, we will learn about the Group of Monuments.
What are the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram?
The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram are religious monuments which date back to the 7th and the 8th century CE and have been added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites due to their immense historical significance. The site has 40 ancient monuments and Hindu temples founded by the Pallava kings. The monuments were carved out of rock along the Coromandel coast of the Bay of Bengal. The place is especially famous for its temples in the form of chariots, cave sanctuaries, and one of the largest open-air rock reliefs in the world: the Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna’s Penance.
The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram are one of the greatest examples of classical Indian architecture and the prowess of the Pallava Dynasty which constructed them. The majestic monuments show the high quality of craftsmanship prevalent in the region during the 6th century CE and the glory of the place was enhanced by the natural landscape.
What are the categories of monuments found there?
The group contains several categories of monuments like the ‘ratha’ temples which are temples in the form of monolithic processional chariots. There are also cave temples or mandapa viharas which contain narratives from the epic Mahabharata and Shaivite, Shakti and Vaishnava inscriptions in several Indian languages and scripts. The group also has rock reliefs and stone-cut temples, out of which the Mukundanayananar Temple and the Olakkanesvara Temple are the most popular. There is also the famous Shore temple with the most finite layout of a Dravida vimana majestically fringing the sea.
Not just in the writings of Indian personalities, but the site has also featured in the texts of foreigners like Marco Polo, European sailors and merchants after the 16th century, Niccolo Manucci, Anthony Hamilton, Pierre Sonnerat and William Chambers. Built by the Pallava dynasty, this UNESCO Heritage Site was also known as the Seven Pagodas in many publications in the colonial era and contemporary literature has also mentioned it as the Mahabalipuram temples or Mamallapuram temples. The site was hidden from the popular narrative for a long time until it was restored after 1960.
The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram are religious monuments which date back to the 7th and the 8th century CE and have been added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites due to their immense historical significance. knowledge Knowledge News, Photos and Videos on General Knowledge
