Thursday, February 16, 2012

Brihadeeswarar Temple, Thanjavur

The Brihadeeswarar Temple at Thanjavur is the world's first complete granite temple. Built in 1010 A.D under the patronage of King Raja Raja Chola I of Chola Dynasty it is a Dravidian architectural masterpiece. This temple is also popularly known as the ‘Big Temple'.

The entire temple area is constructed using hard granite stones.
The temple complex is surrounded by fortified walls. The complex is made up of many structures that are aligned axially. Inside the complex there is main temple, a Nandi, a pillared hall and an assembly hall and many sub-shrines.

The main temple tower is 216 ft in height and is among the tallest of its kind in the world. There is a big 13 ft statue of Nandi carved out of a single rock, at the entrance in front of the main shrine. The garbhagriha is square and sits on a plinth. In the center is placed the image of the Lord Shiva.

The external surface of the temple has been richly carved and is a treat to the eyes. The entire surface is treated with high quality sculpture of myriad manifestations of Shiva.


The temple is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Next we will see more details of the temple tower.


50 comments:

Al said...

Stonework must have been a well-developed art in India, there's so much of it and it's such good quality. Great shots.

Ramakrishnan said...

This temple is one the architectural wonders of India. Unfortunately it has not received the due recognition it deserves even in Tamilnadu !

Kavita Saharia said...

Beautiful carvings .I have never seen such a big statue of Nandi before ,i can see the back of it in your first picture.

Pietro Brosio said...

Rajesh, what a wonderful place. I'd really like to be there for a visit!

Travel France Online said...

Very impressive and magnificent architecture as usual!

Unknown said...

ve been here once...truly amazing....

Zuzana said...

That is an incredible architectural treasure. I am amazed that thousands of years ago man could built such beautiful structures without an ounce of technology. Stunning.
xoxo

joo said...

Looks like a great place!

Lowell said...

Unbelievable! This is majestic and huge! I can see why it is a world heritage site! I'd like a granite counter top in our house and this whole thing is made of granite! As I said, unbelievable!

Pat said...

I have been there...and it is beautiful, as was my impression of everywhere I was in India.

CameraCruise said...

Wonderful shots from a beautiful place!
Thanks for sharing.

Unknown said...

It's spectacular!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Sivinden said...

Beautiful temples! It must have taken a long time and so much hard work to create such buildings.

HansHB said...

Great shots!
I wish you a Happy Friday!

Sylvia K said...

The incredible temples in your country never fail to take my breath away and gorgeous skies as well! Fantastic captures, Rajesh, as always! And, as always, thank you for sharing the beauty!

Sylvia

Carver said...

Very beautiful temple and interesting history.

EG CameraGirl said...

As always I am awed by the history all around you!

Photo Cache said...

another incredible temple. i'm planning on a trip to india, hopefully this year, else next year.

My sky is here

theconstantwalker said...

What a beautiful place.. the temple is stunning.
Many thanks for sharing your lovely images.

Sallie (FullTime-Life.com said...

Another amazing example of carving -- incredibly beautiful. I can hardly imagine how much time it must have taken to finish this. I'm glad it is a World Heritage Site.

RIZALENIO said...

Temples and sculptures - always fascinating to see in your country. Very beautiful. :)

Laura said...

beautiful architecture Rajesh!

Carol said...

An impressive structure! Would love to see this in person.

Indrani said...

There is a spot there from where you can get the entire area in one shot. A great place to visit and revisit.

Anonymous said...

beautiful!

LifeRamblings said...

such a beautiful temple. the carvings are exquisite.

Ebie said...

Work of art well preserved in time! Exquisite stone work!

LadyFi said...

What an impressive temple!

Rakesh Vanamali said...

Absolutely marvelous. Wonderful post, as ever.

R Niranjan Das said...

Lovely post.

www.rajniranjandas.blogspot.com

Cafe au lait said...

Great captures!

Leovi said...

The Temple at Thanjavur Brihadeeswarar is really beautiful, good photos. Greetings.

Tatjana Parkacheva said...

Beautiful temple.

Regards and best wishes

eileeninmd said...

Hi Rajesh, a lovely temple. They are amazing. Thanks for sharing.

Jeevan said...

Wonderful captures Rajesh... it gives an historical feel! It seems u have visited the temple at noon, it would be more brilliant checking the temple complex in evening or morning when sun were beside.

thomas said...

Part of my country,Malaysia used to be under the same King a very long time ago and there are today remnants of Hindu temple from that era in the state of Kedah.

George said...

This is a very impressive temple. I really like your photo, it shows just how magnificent the temple complex is. The detail in your last photo is beautiful.

sappy said...

How magnificently that "Big Temple's" Rajagopuram stands!Brihadeeswara temple is undoubtedly one of the artistic wonders of the world.

eden said...

Beautiful temple! Great shots.

Have a lovely weekend.

giorno26 ¸¸.•*¨*•. said...

Hello :)
dire che questi templi sono magnifici è dire poco !
Sono veramente fantastici.
Si rimane senza parole a guardarli.
La tua terra è veramente meravigliosa.
Buona serata.
Myriam :)

Rosie Gan said...

So much beauty in history.
Rosie

Rajesh said...

Thank you for appreciating this 1000 year old temple.

Unknown said...

Beautiful. The description is nice and very helpful!

ajeethboaz said...

I ve been there, but didnt know so much details thanx for sharing, Nice pics... [www.photoblog.ajeethboaz.com]

AmitAag said...

Great tribute to a grand old temple!

desi Traveler said...

I had no idea about this temple except for knowing about Thanjavur paintings.. thanks.for sharing..

Akshay Kumar G said...

Those temples are absolutely priceless. Thanks for the wonderful pictures. :)

ArjunaUbacha said...

Good to see this detailed post about this temple. Nicely written and one can get the complete picture here.

Jayashree Srivatsan said...

Have been there .magnificent !

Rajesh said...

Thank you for appreciating this 1000 year old artistic temple.