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477:); takes it ever closer to a rounded form; adds motifs and decoration to the outer walls; and changes how the temple aesthetically appears both outside and inside to the pilgrims. The Vesara form allowed the architect and artisans to add more narrative panels about the Epics, the Puranas, the Vedic legends, scenes of artha, kama, dharma (divine iconography). These accompanied illustrations of different types of temple
396:
available materials and construction methods in India from the 7th to 12th centuries. This view is supported by inscriptions discovered in the north
Karnataka region. For example, at the mid-11th-century Joda Kalasha Hindu temple in Sudi – an early Vesara example – an inscription is visible in a mix of Sanskrit and Kannada below Shaiva iconography. It mentions Somesvara I and
132:
avoid using the term "Vesara" because although ancient writers used the word, they may have intended different meanings from its modern usage. Alternative terms for the tradition's whole timespan, from the 7th to the 13th century CE, include "Karnata
Dravida" (Hardy's choice), "Central Indian temple
197:
regionally categorizes Nagara in the north, Dravida in the south and Vesara in the middle. It goes on to state that Nagara emphasizes the four sides, Dravida a polygon (octagon), while Vesara compliments both with circular or elliptical forms. Given the many post-10th-century Hindu and Jain temple
192:
The Vesara style is not mentioned by name in north Indian texts on architecture, according to contemporary architectural scholars. In contrast, it is a term found in most South Indian texts on architecture alongside
Dravida and Nagara. This pattern suggests that the Vesara style originally emerged
261:
states that
Dravida temples are those south Indian temples that have an octagonal (or polygonal) plan, historic Dravidian temples with octagonal plans either were never built or have not survived into the modern age. Similarly, even on the walls of Hindu and Jain temples of Karnataka, there is no
518:
George
Michell describes a characteristic feature as "the obscuring of the outer profile of the building by multiplying the projections of the walls and superstructure; these move restlessly from one plane to another, relying upon effects of light and shade to lend the building its solidity and
563:
towards being variants of each other. The discovery of early examples of elliptical, circular, apsidal Hindu temples, states Dubey, may correspond to the Vesara as they once existed, and as such what the South Indian texts were referring to when they were composed. Adam Hardy states that these
395:
where both Nagara and
Dravida temples were built close to each other. However, each of these temples more or less retained their historic identity. Vesara, states Sinha, should not be treated as a simple mixture of Nagara and Dravida, but as a deliberate architectural synthesis grounded in the
256:
There are other theoretical classifications of Hindu temple architecture, with South Indian texts using the plan and North Indian texts using the overall shape and form, in particular of the superstructure. However, the realized temples built before the 17th century show such an abundance of
564:
inventive forms are better understood in terms of the architecture schools and their geographical context, bearing in mind that those schools shared and competed in their ideas. Vesara evolved in
Karnataka, Varata in the Vidarbha-Berar region, Kalinga in Odisha, and Bhumija in Malwa.
440:
marked a high point of architectural and artistic accomplishment in the Vesara style. Thereafter, many more innovations were introduced and increasingly sophisticated
Kalayana Chalukya and Hoysala temples were built in the emerging Vesara style through the 13th century.
148:
Among those who do use "Vesara", there is some disagreement as to the periods to which it applies. Such disagreements are largely restricted to matters of the term's usefulness and extent. There is general agreement about most aspects of the actual surviving buildings.
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antechamber to the sanctum. The mandapa is generally larger than the sanctum and its vimana, while further open mandapas may be larger still. Some shrines have multiple temples, especially three. These are usually with three entrances off the same mandapa, as at the
305:
bulge helps fuse
Dravida-Nagara ideas, harmonizing the aesthetics outside and inside the temple. In the 19th-century, the British scholar Burgess remarked, this temple has "one of the finest surviving illustration of Hindu decorative artwork in
430:
with rhythmically placed thin pilasters. This thereby incorporates Nagara style and takes an initial step in harmonizing the relationship between how the viewer aesthetically experiences the temple from the outside and from the inside. This
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tower. The walls and superstructure are broadly circular or a straight-sided cone, though the geometry is based on rotating a square imposed on a circle. Vesara also contains unique decorative motifs. A common motif is miniature
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innovation required changes in temples' construction methods and superstructure layouts. These changes were further perfected as the 11th century progressed in
Karnataka. The Sudi temple was a significant step forward. The
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type, showing that the architects were well aware of northern styles. Like the southern vimana superstructure, the Vesara equivalent is strongly divided into storeys or steps, but there are more of them, and the
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architecture style", "Deccan architecture", or for shorter periods, terms referring to local dynasties, such as "Chalukyan architecture". Increasingly precise alternatives might include "Early Chalukya" or "
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in the late 10th century) contains elements of both Dravida and Nagara styles. In particular the shape of the superstructure over the sanctum is usually pyramidal in profile, and shorter than the northern
551:
According to Dubey, there is no consensus in pre-13th-century Indian tradition as to how Vesara should be described or identified. The conditions and "mixed" features for Vesara are also found in
301:
Kasivisvesvara temple at Lakkundi (1075 CE) fully illustrates the Vesara architecture. Left: On the pronounced bhadra are Nagara and Bhumija motifs; Right: in the floor plan, the
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180:
explains that this name is derived from its mixed nature, as its plan is Dravidian, yet its shape is Nagara in the details. The same text says that Vesara is also called
408:
Shankararya constructed in the middle of the town of Shundi a dwelling for Nagesvara so that the finials were completed in a manner that none could possibly imagine.
1026:
Lal Mani Dubey (1978), Some Observations on the Vesara School of Hindu Architecture, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 39, Issue II, pp. 1000-1006,
283:
418:
The Joda Kalasha temple thus was a challenging innovation on a trend whose earliest surviving sample is in what is now the Kukkanur village of Karnataka, the
237:
state that a Vesara may be circular, elliptical or apsidal in plan. A third view is proffered in the section 6 of the Marichi samhita, verses 18.47–48 of the
257:
experimentation, innovations and overlapping varieties that scholars generally avoid adhering to strict theoretical terms. For example, while the theory in
668:
379:
Other art historians such as Sinha state that experimentation and innovations in Hindu temple architecture began quite early in Karnataka at sites such as
481:
as aedicules to the outside and inside. This ornamentation sharply contrasts with the plain structures found in the Dravida temples of earlier centuries.
348:. Though there is clearly a good deal of continuity with the Badami or Early Chalukya style, some writers only date the start of Vesara to the later
400:
981 (circa 1060 AD). After mentioning Hindu dynasties all over the Indian subcontinent, successful public works, ascetics and the schools of the
270:(artisans) in 9th to 11th century Karnataka were deliberately ignoring traditional texts and experimenting with novel and innovative approaches.
58:
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structures and ruins in Vesara form that have survived in Karnataka, the Vesara style has been linked to Karnataka and texts composed there.
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The early Vesara temples are primarily near and between the Tungabhadra River and the Krishna River before they merge. These sites include:
1155:
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states that the Vesara can be circular or elliptical all the way from base to stupi, or square below and round above, or an apsidal temple.
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Upper: 7th-century Mahakutesvara temple with Dravida architecture (Mahakuta complex of Hindu temples, east of Badami); Lower: 11th-century
42:
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30:
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1123:
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featured temples in a style that mixed some features of the Nagara and the Dravida styles. For example, they used both the northern
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The Vesara architecture departs from the Dravida architecture in several key conceptual and experiential ways: it projects the
437:
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1091:
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422:(1000 – 1025 AD). The Kukkanur temple shows mostly Dravidian features, particularly in the superstructure. The sanctum and
138:
321:
134:
50:
1135:
882:
675:
1045:
Indian temple typologies, in Glimpses of Indian History and Art Reflections on the Past, Perspectives for the Future
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Indian temple typologies, in Glimpses of Indian History and Art Reflections on the Past, Perspectives for the Future
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Indian temple typologies, in Glimpses of Indian History and Art Reflections on the Past, Perspectives for the Future
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In general, many South Indian texts state that Vesara is a building that is "circular or round" in plan above its
419:
1084:
Indian Temple Architecture: Form and Transformation : the Karṇāṭa Drāviḍa Tradition, 7th to 13th Centuries
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The Vesara style originated in the region between the Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers that today is northern
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109:. It is one of six major types of Indian temple architecture found in historic texts, the others being
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style of North India. This fusion style likely originated in the historic architecture schools of the
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101:. According to Indian texts, Vesara Style was popular in central India, particularly in between the
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885:. Early and Later Chalukya are used by George Michell, who avoids "vesara". See Michell, 146-149
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Architectural Invention in Sacred Structures: The Case of Vesara Temples of Southern India
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type of superstructure over the sanctum in different temples of similar date, such as at
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Joda-kalasha temple, Sudi, Karnataka – another early innovator of the Vesara-style (
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209:(neck). Some examples of this definition for Vesara are found in verse 50.15–17 of the
94:
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102:
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region. It is common in the surviving temples of later Chalukyas and Hoysalas in the
919:, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 55, No. 4, pp. 382-399,
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316:. According to some art historians, the roots of Vesara style can be traced to the
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Southern Indian site layouts with shape details characteristic of the
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Imagining Architects: Creativity in the Religious Monuments of India
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Hardy, 8: "Chalukyan" is used by the pioneering Victorian historian
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and Varata architecture, where synthesis and innovation drives the
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245:, namely that a Vesara can be circular or it can be a square up to
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Adam Hardy (May 2013). Tiziana Lorenzetti; Fabio Scialpi (eds.).
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Adam Hardy (May 2013). Tiziana Lorenzetti; Fabio Scialpi (eds.).
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Adam Hardy (May 2013). Tiziana Lorenzetti; Fabio Scialpi (eds.).
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The Indian Temple Forms in Karnata Inscriptions and Architecture
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1104:, 2nd edn. 1994, Yale University Press Pelican History of Art,
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roof motif is less dominant than in contemporaneous southern
81:
is a hybrid form of Indian temple architecture that combines
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Brahmadeva temple, Savadi – notable for being fully stellate
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depiction of any elliptical temple. This may be because the
1116:
The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms
868:, which occupied roughly the north of the modern state of
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The Vesara style (if defined as beginning only with the
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Later Vesara temples include the Hoysala temples at
46:
Ornate ceiling in Chennakesava temple, 11th century.
1102:
The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent
717:For the complete inscription and the context, see
413:Translated by Lionel Barnett, quoted by Ajay Sinha
1047:. Sapienza Università di Roma. pp. 102–107.
547:Comparisons with Bhumija and Varata architectures
320:of Badami (500 – 753 AD) whose Early Chalukya or
225:and others. On the other hand, verse 7.15 of the
145:", depending on dynastic and regional specifics.
988:. University of Delaware Press. pp. 77–83.
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528:projections from the tower on the roof over an
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193:and grew in the south of the subcontinent. The
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832:. Sapienza Università di Roma. p. 102.
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336:. This style was further refined by the
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356:(983 – 1195 AD), whose sites include
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766:. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 291.
74:Chennakeshava temple, 11th century.
660:Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura
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1118:, University of Chicago Press,
594:Kasivisvesvara temple, Lakkundi
1141:Brief History of Hindu Temples
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541:Kedareshvara Temple, Balligavi
522:There are generally prominent
455:Kedareshvara Temple, Balligavi
249:and then is circular from the
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1:
404:, it states in verses 16–17:
344:(750 – 983 AD) in sites like
241:, and verses 19.36–38 of the
139:Western Chalukya architecture
721:, Vol. 15 Part 1, pp. 85–94.
322:Badami Chalukya architecture
235:Ishana-Sivagurudeva-Paddhati
137:", "Later" or "Kalyana" or "
135:Badami Chalukya architecture
54:Keshava temple, 11th century
1156:Indian architectural styles
676:Chennakeshava Temple, Belur
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763:The Hindu Temple, Volume 2
760:Kramrisch, Stella (1976).
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27:Indian architectural style
1161:Hindu temple architecture
674:The Kesava shrine at the
606:(and Joda Kalasha temple)
420:Kallesvara (Shiva) temple
1114:Michell, George (1988),
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982:Sinha, A.J. (2000).
143:Hoysala architecture
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1017:Harle, 256
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729:References
385:Pattadakal
342:Manyakheta
334:Pattadakal
205:(base) or
130:Adam Hardy
870:Karnataka
498:shikharas
463:shikharas
318:Chalukyas
314:Karnataka
264:sthanpati
165:1060 CE).
153:Etymology
99:Karnataka
83:Dravidian
1032:44139449
855:Hardy, 8
697:Manasara
616:Halebidu
578:Kukkanur
568:Examples
531:antarala
525:sukanasa
519:shape."
492:shikhara
479:shikaras
411:—
393:Mahakuta
358:Lakkundi
326:shikhara
259:Manasara
247:prastara
243:Mayamata
239:Manasara
195:Manasara
141:", and "
105:and the
645:dravida
626:Gallery
553:Bhumija
513:vimanas
502:Bhumija
475:mandapa
424:mandapa
402:silpins
354:Kalyani
306:India".
274:History
268:silpins
182:Sankara
123:Kalinga
119:Bhumija
115:Dravida
91:Dharwad
1122:
1108:
1090:
1051:
1030:
992:
944:
925:991180
923:
836:
811:
770:
662:, 1258
641:Dambal
508:kapota
471:bhadra
459:bhadra
433:bhadra
428:bhadra
389:Badami
381:Aihole
368:, and
362:Dambal
346:Ellora
330:vimana
303:bhadra
207:kantha
172:means
170:Vesara
111:Nagara
95:Deccan
87:Nagara
79:Vesara
1028:JSTOR
921:JSTOR
683:Notes
612:Belur
584:Gudur
370:Gadag
366:Itagi
251:griva
203:karna
188:Texts
1120:ISBN
1106:ISBN
1088:ISBN
1049:ISBN
990:ISBN
942:ISBN
834:ISBN
809:ISBN
768:ISBN
695:The
618:and
604:Sudi
559:and
539:and
398:saka
391:and
174:mule
352:of
340:of
1152::
1082:,
974:^
890:^
848:^
820:^
782:^
750:^
736:^
614:,
515:.
387:,
383:,
364:,
360:,
163:c.
121:,
117:,
113:,
1057:.
998:.
950:.
872:.
842:.
776:.
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