Monday, November 11, 2013

Rani Gumpha, Udaygiri

Rani Gumpha at Udaygiri is in the middle terrace of the eastern slope of Udayagiri Hillock. The cave is dated back to 1st century B.C. The cave is belongs to Kharavela of Mahameghavahana Chedi dynasty,  the Emperor of Kalinga. It is believed that the cave was occupied by the queen of Lalatendu Kesari.


It is a double storeyed rock-cut cave rectangular in plan covering three sides of a quadrangle, the forth on the south-eastern side is open. The upper storey is not immediately above the lower one but recedes a few meters away into the rocky mass.


The lower storey has 3 component, consists of two wing and the main wing, where the right and left wings meet the main wing are two small guard rooms. The upper storey also has same component except the guard room. 


The entrance arches are relieved with flowers, honey-suckle lotus and creepers of various designs. In the triangular portions above these arches are variously srivatsa, nandipada, snake and lotus- all auspicious Jaina symbols.


The facade of the cells are carved with sculptural friezes like women rescuing scene from wild elephant, deer, hunting scene, female dancing scene, couple offering flowers, royal procession, and the unique guard / door keeper of Greek style ornamentation adorned the cave. 


33 comments:

Our photos said...

Beautiful photos!
Greetings, RW & SK

eileeninmd said...

Wow, so much history wrapped in these caves. Wonderful photos.

Snap said...

I'm used to seeing the Hindu temples, not the Jain. This is wonderful and different. Thank you.

Mary Howell Cromer said...

Such beauty in those old structures, very ornate~

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

That is definitely old and fascinating information shared. I can't imagine living In a stone home such as this.

Karen said...

That's incredible that it's still standing. Great shots!

Ramakrishnan said...

Amazing to see the rock cut cave from more than 2000 years ago !

Sudhir R said...

Beautiful! reminds me of Badami

Irene said...

Amazing! This is an awesome place to visit :)

Thanks for sharing!

Vores have said...

Great pictures / beautiful collages :)

Icy BC said...

Wow...what a magnificent sight! Wonderful photos..

Marisol@TravelingSolemates said...

It's incredibel how old this cave is. The beautiful friezes look amazingly well preserved.

Carver said...

The carvings in stone are always so amazing to me.

VaishVijay said...

Beautiful! Looking at the thumb nail picture, for a sec I thought it looked like Mahabalipuram rock caves!

SandyCarlson said...

Again, an incredible place.

Always, I am impressed and humbled by the time and effort that went into creating this structure.

Kusum said...

Great place indeed to visit!

Laura said...

How beautiful Rajesh!

Anonymous said...

Spectacular caves!

Muza-chan said...

Beautiful place :)

Leovi said...

Nice pictures, wonderful cave, a wonderful place!

Katrin Klink said...

beautiful and impressive!

Fun60 said...

They are incredible cave dwellings. I don't think I have ever seen such ornate ones before.

George said...

This looks like a fascinating place to visit. Your first photo shows how impressive the cave is.

Roger Owen Green said...

Amazed how creative the people were!
ROG, ABC Wednesday team

photowannabe said...

Totally incredible.

Reader Wil said...

It is so difficult to imagine how people lived thousands of years ago!
Thank you for your post.
Wil, ABCW Team.

genie said...

Can you imagine living in a lace like this. It is another amazing piece of India’s history. This one was a fascinating post.

Anonymous said...

beautiful place. never heard of it before.

R Niranjan Das said...

Nice post. Those are some wonderful carvings.

K.A. Acharya said...

Awesome shots.

Abhijit Ray said...

Beautiful sculpture.

Arti said...

wow, incredible heritage marvel.

Vishal Rathod said...

Awesome Shots. Nice place . Thanks for sharing